Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf
by Psudocode Samurai
Summary: A stranger finds a starving, homeless Naruto at the age of six. Follow as Naruto's life begins to change, towards what, has yet to be seen. Strong, but not godly Naruto and OC. Naru/Ten focused with small harem. M for violence and citrus eventually.
1. Chapter 1

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 1

A/N- I don't own Naruto, not to mention the many characters and abilities I will likely be referencing. That said, Drakus is mine. If you want to barrow him let me know, the character himself is a traveler (all will be explained). In a way you could call this a mass crossover, but really it's more they know Drakus, as opposed to them knowing Naruto and the gang. Journeys is a long running series of mine, and this is the first part I have every felt like posting, therefore there will be a lot left unknown for now, things that will be revealed in flashbacks and conversations. Pairings and the like are largely undecided, I'll be advancing the ages a bit, so some of the potential pairings are not quite so creepy early on. However, it's less that they will all be older and more akin to the fact that the academy will just run longer. I'm intending on this being a small 'harem' for both Naruto and Drakus, no more than perhaps three apace. For Naruto I've been leaning toward Tenten/Ino/Fem-Haku I'm rather undecided on the latter two, however, I'm liking the idea of Tenten being there thus far as the 'main', as she's not used to often. Drakus I'm utterly undecided, I know who will be friends and the like, but the pairings I'm unsure on.

Drakus himself is based (loosely) off of my character I use in Warhammer 40k. For those that know of the game (and a great game it is ^_^) you will see some things you know, but all in all I'm keeping things close to the vest for the character, there will be no guns and the like though, honestly, I hate guns, and dropping them into series like this is a bit annoying to me. I'm intending for our resident fox to be trained by him, Naruto will end up stronger, but I'm going to be keeping him from gaining that instant, godlike, power that so many seem to enjoy. I will admit, some such tales are fun, but I think a character is much more entertaining when there is a struggle for that power (thus, I hate the bloody Sharingan). Drakus didn't get his strength overnight, and, for the most part, he is not some uber character that can take on all the elemental nations (Those characters annoy me even more) Drakus is strong, little more than a low Jounin in terms of ability outside of raw fighting strength, but that will be shown in time.

* * *

"On your feet boy."

A low groan echoed through a dim, filth encrusted ally.

"ON YOUR FEET!"

Slowly blue eyes opened to see a shadowed form staring down at him; it took a moment for his vision to clear enough to make out the figure. The man was huge, at least to him, he didn't think he even reached the man's waist; he was looking down at him with his arms crossed, as though expecting him to jump up instantly.

After another moment of the boy gawking at him he watched him pull his legs up underneath him and push, it took him longer than it should for a small boy, if he had to guess it was due to his underfed state. He had spotted the bare feet from behind a rubbish bin in the ally and was more than a little shocked to see the grime smeared face of a blond boy; he looked to be no more than four. It took him a moment of studying him to see he was simply asleep, he couldn't decide if that was better or worse than the boy being knocked unconscious.

Once he was standing, using the wall to steady himself a bit, he looked back up to the face of the man to see a hard scowl and shrank back a bit, unsure what this giant was going to do, one too many encounters with other villagers told him that look was never good, however, he was surprised to see that this angry look didn't seem to reach his eyes. In the past it had been the other way around and that was something he couldn't really understand. Others would lure him in with smiles or at least neutrality, but had hate filled eyes. After another moment of trying to figure out the man he was shocked to see his face split in a massive grin and extend a hand to him, a deep, rumbling voice echoing in the streets.

"You got up on your own and you didn't run! Good! Now, what's your name boy?" He quirked an eyebrow when the boy just shook his head. "Eh!? You have a name don't you?" The boy nodded. "Well?"

The boys head lowered a bit, dirty blond hair obscuring his eyes. "If I tell you…you'll get mad at me…"

The big man scowled again, the boy shrank a bit more looking as though he was trying to pull into his threadbare white shirt, the orange spiral looked like it was almost worn off. "What are you? Simple? I've never met you, so why would I get mad at you if I heard your name?"

The boy flinched slightly at the word 'simple' but gave a half shrug, "E-Everyone else does…"

"Well I'm not everyone. You tell me your name, I'll tell you mine. Now speak pup! Show you are a man!"

The boy scowled a bit, if anything the man's grin grew slightly, "Uzumaki Naruto!"

He let out a bark of laughter, and for the first time the boy noticed he looked…weird, he had longer fangs, even longer than his own lightly over-pointed ones, and when his laughter died down he saw the man's eyes were yellow, not white, with brown pupils. However, despite his feral looks it seemed his hair was well kept, not overly done, but not ragged like some of the kids with marks on their cheeks he had seen. It was swept back toward the back of his head, but not slicked; kinda like he just ran his hand threw it after getting it wet and just let it dry. "What!? Fishcake!? Man, you got the short stick. The names Drakus, and I've taken a liking to you pup. Come on, were getting food. I've been in the woods too long and I want someone else to do the cooking! Time to see what meat this town can offer…" Naruto swore he could hear the man slurp back his drool at the thought.

Before the boy could act he found a hand on the back of his shirt lifting him from his feet and dropping him on his shoulder. Now in the better light he could see he was wearing a heavy fur cloak despite the heat of summer and looked to have a number of odd necklaces and badges all over his chest and arms. He looked around him for a moment in shock, he'd never been up his high before, he didn't even notice the looks of shock and disgust coming his way. Then the man's words came back to him making him scowl. "Hey! I'm not a fishcake!"

"Never said you were fishcake, I said your name was fishcake, fishcake."

The boy growled before crossing his arms and looking away, "It's not written that way!"

The man cocked an eyebrow as they turned down a side street, "Oh? Maelstrom then eh?" The man paused a moment, his nostrils flaring to test the air before he turned down another street. "Better, you don't look like a fishcake, got the wrong eyes for it."

Naruto was silent for a moment, was that a complement? Who the hell was this guy!? He was trying to decide what to do about this man when they stopped in front of building that Naruto was familiar with, it was a place where he couldn't even walk past without being chased. "I…I don't think tha-"

He snorted before pulling open the door, "Hello, welcome to Udon's Grill-" the man behind a small podium froze at the sight of the giant, and the boy on his shoulder. The man stood a head above himself, and he considered himself to be quite tall.

"Well? Speak man! We're here to eat, is there a wait or something?"

"No…no sir, however, I'm afraid that the…boy…is not allowed on the premises."

Drakus's eyes narrowed a bit, "Why."

The maître d' thought for a moment, the pause not lost on the man before him even as the boy's eyes looked down again, not wanting to hear the answer. "Well, the boy was chased from restaurant after trying to steal food." The man gave a smug smile, seemingly proud of himself for his fib.

The large man scowled a bit and looked to the boy on his shoulder, "Well?"

Naruto shot the man several quick glances before giving a half nod, "Ya…I took food, but they threw it away, I thought it was ok…" If anything the man's features twisted further in rage.

His roar shocked the whole of the restaurant and several of the people on the street outside paused to look into the window, "WHAT!? You eat from a REFUSE BIN!?" Naruto shrinking once more was enough of an answer for him, his head whipped back to the smaller man who hid slightly behind the little podium. "You, will we be allowed to eat here?" The man shook his head slightly, "Very well. Naruto. Tell me, where is your favorite place, we will go there. Then, I have a man to see."

Naruto seemed to perk up a bit at the thought of going to his favorite place. "Ichiraku's!!!" Drakus chuckled a bit at the outburst as the boy lept from his shoulder and moved to the door, "Come on!"

He moved quickly to the door, less he was left behind but as he pushed the door open yellow eyes locked on the maître d' once more, "We're not finished here…" the scent of fear filled the air.

As the pair moved down the street, this time the boy leading the way, Drakus was taking note of the reactions from the people, he was getting quite a few odd looks, he expected as much though, after all, a man his size wearing a wolf pelt didn't go unnoticed. "Tell me kid, what is this 'Ichiraku's'?"

Naruto shot him a brilliant smile before rounding a corner and waiting for his companion. "It's the best ramen in the whole world! Come on!"

The larger man's shoulders fell a bit, ramen? "Damnit kid, I said I wanted meat!"

"Well…they have different kinds of ramen…I like the pork ramen…but the miso is good too. Oh, and the beef…" The 'conversation' continued like this until the pair found themselves before a small curtained bar with the sign for 'Ichiraku's Ramen' proudly displayed up top. The boy was quick to dart under the overhanging curtain and leapt up onto a stool, almost bouncing in place at the thought of his favorite food.

Deep laughter echoed as Drakus made his way in to sit beside the young blond who seemed to looking toward the back room for something. "Now, now kid. Give them a minute." Naruto just pouted a moment before crying out with a loud 'Oi', not long after an older man who seemed to be in a perpetual squint made his way to the counter. At first he saw the larger man, his brow furrowing before smiling at the blond.

"Well good afternoon Naruto, who's your friend?" It was clear to Drakus the man didn't trust him, but if anything this made him like the old man more.

"This is Drakus-san, he said he'd get me lunch! Drakus, this is Teuchi-san, he runs the place, and makes the best ramen ever!"

"Oh?" A suspicious gaze landed on the large man, he was a bit shocked that he could look him in the eye despite the fact he was sitting down. His look was quickly masked by a grin at the boy's introduction, "Well, that's nice of him."

"Ya ya, I'm a good guy, get your food pup."

He cast a timid eye to the larger man, "All I want?"

His wolfish grin came back, slowing the long teeth once more, "All you want."

The face splitting grin erupted once more before Teuchi gave a low chuckle, "You're going to regret that boy."

Drakus tilted his head slightly in confusion before his jaw dropped at what spilled from the boy's mouth, "Ten bowls of pork! Two miso to start!"

"What…but…NO!"

Naruto shot him a pleading look, "B-But you said…"

He sputtered for a moment as the old owner laughed, "He's got you there kid."

His eyebrow twitched a moment before his grin returned, "Alight...If we're playing this game…Kid, I'll get you all the noodles you want, but if I do this then you're coming with me to my meeting."

Naruto thought for a moment but shrugged, if this guy had wanted to hurt him he would have done so by now, "Ok, I've got nowhere else to go."

He caught Teuchi's deep frown before shouting into the back the order then looking to Drakus. "I don't know. Surprise me old man, I just want meat. Lots of it."

"You can pay right…sorry to say, but you don't look like much."

The wolf grin widened, he liked people who didn't mince words. "Don't worry, even if I don't have anything you want it can be charged to the Hokage."

That caused both of them to gape, "Now see here son, you can't just 'charge' things to Lord Hokage!"

He looked at the old man in confusion before his posture shifted a bit, into one a bit more regal, "What, Sarutobi-san is still the Kage of this village, correct? He has not named his successor to my knowledge." The duo nodded and he then seems to go back to his laid back ways. "Then I don't see the problem."

Naruto gaped slightly, "how do you know the old man?"

Teuchi turned to begin preparing the noodles but kept his head half turned to listen, he was just as curious, it seems ramen shop owners were almost as bad as bartenders. "Heh, old man…Kid, this guy is the old man, Sarutobi-san more like a fossil…" He chuckled a bit at the mental image he had, "To answer you kid, I knew him back when he was just a pup himself, but I'd say the last time I saw him was six, seven years ago, night of the Kyuubi attack." His eyes shadowed at the memory, his lips pressed into a thin line.

Naruto's mouth was slack at the news, this guy fought the Kyuubi!? "What happened? Jii-Jii doesn't tell me anything, I only know a little from a book I took from the academy."

He quirked an eyebrow at that but shrugged, "I don't know what all they put in that book pup, all I know is what I saw, huge, glowing red fox, a giant frog with a blond on it. I didn't get to see much, I was tasked with a squad to try and keep some of the tails busy. Took all I had to keep two back from the others. Got the scars to prove it…"

He paused before looking around the little bar for a moment as the pair listened with wide eyes, Teunchi had been in the shelter that night with his daughter, all they could do was listen to the roars, the screams. The shaking and the feeling of dread was still something that haunted his dreams, but to face it directly, and keep part of it at bay at that? He noticed the man make a sipping gesture and his wide grin as the chef brought up a small bottle of sake' and a cup of tea for Naruto. The large man thanked him before his eyes dulled again in memory. "Your fourth was a great man, not many would sacrifice themselves that way. I've never seen a being like your shinigami before, but no matter what I still think the price was too high. Having your soul eaten? Man…the bastard could have cut him a break…he was already offering his life after all…" He knocked back the dish in his had before re-filling it. "Anyway, as suddenly as it was there it was gone, dropped me fifty feet on my ass when it vanished. Afterwards your 'Jii-Jii' had his hands pretty full, but I got to talk to him a couple of times, mostly about that night, like now, he wanted my opinion on the whole thing. Then I finished my business and left." He chuckled a bit in memory before his nose crinkled slightly, his head locking on the passage leading to the back room before a small, brown haired girl came out with a massive tray filled with meats and vegetables.

If anything the boy's eyes were even wider, "B-But they said the fox could destroy everything with just ONE tail, and you had TWO!" The big man shrugged, "Wow…you must be really strong!"

Drakus's smile faded somewhat but gave a small nod, "Strong…ya, some have said that…"

His grin returned as a large bowl was placed before him, brimming with meat; the sent drove him to salivating again as he saw the boy nab a pair of chop-sticks and after a small prayer dove into the ramen with a vengeance, his mouth hung open slightly at the sight of him literally inhaling the ramen. After a moment he looked to the old man and who he presumed was his daughter and gestured slightly, going back and forth between the blond and the narrow eyed man. "Ya…that's the look he gets every time someone sees him eat for the first time…"

He could only voice one word as he watched the boy move onto the next bowl, seemingly oblivious to the heat of the soup. "Hhhhoooowwwww…."

The little girl giggled at that, again, not the first time they had heard such a thing. "Everyone asks, no one knows."

He took up his own set of the sticks as he watched the boy from the corner of his eye, shaking his head with a deep, guff chuckle. 'I have seen battle scared veterans, starving immigrants, creatures beyond imagine and even the spirits of the dead, but none of them attacked a meal quite like this…' After taking a large portion of the noodles and blowing for a moment he began to eat, pausing to grin at the chef and offer his praise before attacking it not unlike the boy, but with at least a bit more control, this stuff was hot...

After what had amounted to almost twenty bowls of ramen between the two of them and several bottles of sake' Naruto let out a hefty burp, one quickly followed by Drakus who let out a bark of laughter. "Right! Now this is what I was after! Kid, you head on to the tower and keep your jii-jii company until I get there, I need to pay…" He made a show of searching his cloak for a moment while Naruto dropped from the stool.

"Okay, I'll see you soon, and thanks for the food!" The fur clad man just waved him off before resuming the search. As the boy vanished around the corner both Teuchi's eyes and his own locked, the once narrowed eyes opening a bit, giving him the appearance of a stone faced snake.

"Ayame, go into the back for a minute will you?" The girl gave him a strange look but nodded and scurried off, taking a tower of bowls with her. "Now. What is your business with Naruto." It was less a question, more of a warning.

The wolf grin appeared once more, "Protective of the pup, eh?" The chef didn't move. "Maybe you should be the one to tell me. What's wrong with him? This city seems as likely to hang him as to hug him."

The elderly man stiffened slightly, his face a mask of shame, "It's not something were allowed to talk about. You'll have to ask the Hokage."

Drakus quirked an eyebrow, if he had to ask the village leader then it was something serious. He sat there for several long moments, his mind abuzz as he tried to find the answer. He pushed the question aside, letting his mind continue it's work as he turned his attention back to Teuchi. "I found the kid in an alley, thought he was knocked out, but he woke up after I shouted at him. Pup seems to have a good heart, but it's heavier than any I have ever encountered. There's a fire in him though, one I think could be kindled into something great…" A small smile graced his features as his eyes took on a far off look. One that made the old ramen cook smile slightly. "However, that's going to be up to him. Now, about you, if everyone else treats him like that, why not you?"

The man stiffened once more, he wasn't used to people being quite so blunt with him, however that quickly passed as a wide smile of his own appeared. "Heh, I'm not that complex a person Drakus-san. The boy loves my cooking, anyone who loves ramen that much is okay in my book." The pairs laughter echoed though the street, causing quite a few odd glances at the estranged shop.

"Well, if that's all it takes for him to find a place, then all the better. Now, I have a meeting to attend to, and I'm sure that the pup is driving the 'old man' mad by now. I have a feeling I'll be frequenting your stand quite often my friend. Until then." He made a strange symbol with one hand, his eyes closed as he mumbled something before grinning again and standing, this time reaching easily into his cloak, the furs parting enough to allow the old man, and his reemerging daughter, a glance at the 'clothing' he wore underneath. Whatever it was it shown in the dim light as though it was some form of precious metal.

"Before that, there are enough people that don't use his name, if you're going to be around him much, at least call him Naruto."

His grin returned to that of a wolf before placing something into his empty ramen bowl. "We'll have to wait and see about that Teuchi-san. Names are things that earned in my world, and it's something that must reflect the individual. So who knows, maybe he will end up being as you say. A Maelstrom."

Teuchi watched until he turned a corner before looking at the object and went white as a sheet. The little girl was a little scared at first before her father reached into the bowl and drew out something that was about the size of an egg, as he turned it over in his hands she gasped, it was a gem, raw and uncut, bits of rock interlacing it's ice-blue depths.

*thud*

Two bodies fell to the ground. Yes, that was a good tip.


	2. Chapter 2

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 2

* * *

Disclaimer – See chapter one.

A/N- some of my futzing with ages will be shown in this chapter, as I was intending to have most of the classes graduate at around fourteen or fifteen, as opposed to the normal twelve-thirteen. Just an FYI.

* * *

Somehow, he remembered the walls being bigger. That was his first thought as he gazed upon the great tower once more. The seat of power for Konoha was impressive to most. High walls, and a higher tower, the spire itself adorned with the symbol of the village, it was all very inspiring…unless you had spent most of your days in the elemental capitols.

With a sigh he adjusted his pelt, the large wolf head coming from his right shoulder. 'Well, let's get this over with…' He gave a quick check of his belt pouch to ensure he still had the scroll and moved to the gates. At once two guards stepped forward, ANBU he assumed, judging by their masks.

"State your business."

"Drakus of the Elemental Nations, here to see the Sandaime Hokage to present a trade proposal." He pulled a portion of the pelt aside to reveal a breastplate that nearly blinded the guards. It caught the light as well as any mirror, it's silvered surface obviously lovingly maintained. There, just blow his right collar was a strange, five pointed badge forged from gold, on each prong of the pentagon was an elemental symbol, a badge that only one who had the trust of all their known world could bare.

At once the pair snapped to attention, one moved to open the tower doors while the other vanished in a whirlwind of leafs. "Sir! We will inform Lord Hokage of your arrival." He gave a curt nod before re-adjusting his cloak.

"Very good. Also, I sent a young charge ahead of me; I assume he arrived unhindered…"

The ANBU's posture stiffened slightly, "S-Sir, Yes Sir! The standing order is to allow the d-to allow the boy into the tower when the Hokage is present."

Drakus's eyes narrowed slightly but nodded, "Good, I would hate to be seen as dishonest to one of the younger generation due to the…shortsightedness…of the local guard."

The animal masked man gave an almost invisible shudder at the thought of annoying a man who had the ear of all the Elemental Lords. Drakus swept past the man, not sparing him a second glance before moving through the small entryway and up the stairs. As he climbed, taking the stairs three at a time with his greater height. His posture relaxed once more as he glanced into several of the side rooms, watching the various inhabitants rush about in their tasks, paperwork mostly. All in all it was rather relaxing to him, all very normal, mundane, kinda nice in a world where people could walk on water as easily as land.

As he rounded the last past spiral he began to pick up voices, one that he could easily recall. "I was told to wait for the Old Man in his office!"

A surprising snarl was the answer that echoed through the halls, "Listen here you little shit, I don't care if the Fire Lord herself told you to, you're not going in there!"

He could pick out the anger and sadness in Naruto's voice easily enough as he paused, waiting to see how it would play out, "But he lets me stay here all the time! Why not now!"

"He's not in! I'll not have you destroying his office with your pranks! Leave. Now!"

Finally rounding the last corner he moved in behind the irate boy and placed both hands onto the boy's shoulders. "Then I suppose there will no problem if I were to stay with him then."

The young man stood his ground before the barbaric looking giant. He took a steadying breath before moving back to his desk. "The boy is of no concern; I'll have him removed shortly. Now then, do you have an appointment?"

Naruto looked up to see another wolfy grin before his shoulder was given a comforting squeeze, "Not in the slightest."

After moving through a few papers he seemed to find what he was looking for, "Well without an appointment I'm afraid that I cannot allow you in. The Hokage is a busy man and cannot be bothered by anyone who wonders in off the street."

Drakus's scowl could have caused the man's hair to burst into flames, "Tell me boy. How is it I got past the front gate if I didn't have the authorization to be here?"

That caused the man to stiffen, "Well…you could have business in the records department."

"The one three floors down."

He let out a sigh, "Who may I tell him is calling?"

Drakus pushed Naruto ahead of him, letting the boy open the doors to the office, "Oh no, I don't want to bother you, the ANBU have already informed him of our presence, we'll make sure to let the Hokage know of your hard work."

The man's complexion could have raveled snow as Drakus stooped to avoid hitting his head, he saw Naruto already bouncing on a chair while the elderly man across the desk continues to allow his pen to fly. The sound of the doors closing finally made the man look up past the brim of his hat. A grin split his features at the sight of his surrogate grandson before fading slightly at the sight of the fur clad man.

"Drakus…"

His grin threatened to split his face as he moved toward the desk, "Hiruzen-kun! It's been too long, how have you been?"

The Hokage stood slowly, but his posture was unusually stiff as he rounded the desk. "I suppose that's one way you can look at it…"

"Oh come on, don't be that way, you make it sound like nothing good ever comes from my visits."

"Considering that last time you were here the Kyuubi attacked. Before that it was to deliver the declaration for the last war. Need I continue?"

He had the good grace to look sheepish at that, "I suppose when you put it that way…"

Naruto was looking at the scene with a bit of confusion, they seemed to know each other, but he only ever saw Jii-Jii use that expression when he talked to the man with all the bandages and the missing arm. After a few seconds of looking at each other Naruto felt the air get a bit heavier somehow as a cold sweat began to form on his brow, he didn't know what was going on, but he could feel the anger rolling off the Hokage in waves, waves that forced Naruto out of the chair just as a burst of motion filled the room. Before he could blink he heard the sounds of steel on steel, the clangs coming so fast that it almost sounded like one loud ring, as he looked over the seat of the chair he saw the elderly man with a kunai in hand, the blade close to almost puncturing Drakus's throat, however his own dagger was held before him, keeping the tip from dealing a fatal blow.

Sarutobi's hand was shaking ever so slightly with the force of pushing at the blade before it backed off; the grin on Drakus's face hadn't faded in the slightest. After a moment the Hokage's smile grew to match his opponent before his free hand came up to the small of the man's back, his laughter filling the room with Drakus's deeper chuckle. "You haven't changed in the slightest old friend. Now, what is it that brings you back to our humble village?"

As he moved up to one of the guest chairs he reached over and pulled Naruto back into his seat, the boy's eyes as wide as saucers. "Well, originally it was just a trade proposal, but upon meeting my young friend here I had a few more questions. First, the real business, have to work in order to play yes?" Sarutobi's face returned to one of seriousness as he looked over the scroll that Drakus had produced. "I've had a look at it, as well as some of the addendums that some of the surrounding villages have wished to add, in the end it's all hinging on you, Hokage-sama."

"About a month ago it came to many of the Elemental Lord's attention that the Land of Wave was intending to begin construction on a bridge that will unite the islands in that area with the mainland, creating a lucrative trading town and port for the region. I'm sure you know that Stone has a monopoly on shipping routes, both foreign and domestic because of this. Wave's bridge could break that stranglehold and help the whole of the nations. As of right now Sand is offering metal for the construction of the bridge at cost, so long as they get a discount on port fees in the future, remarkable, in my mind, that he would think so far ahead. Waterfall is looking to provide foodstuffs to the workers in hope of a similar deal. The Land of Snow is already putting up the money to help fund the project in order to expand their jewel crafting market. In the two former instances, both Sand and Waterfall are looking to make shipments to Wave via Leaf's highways and trails, they will need slightly more relaxed border procedures in order to expedite the trade, as well as increased patrols to help with bandits and missing nin. In exchange they are to offer better trade rates with Kanoha and eventually a stronger alliance with improved trade routes. Their looking for a response from Kanoha before they send the proposal to Wave to finalize the details. Now I know you have to run this by the council, but I will let you know that the Fire Lord is eagerly awaiting your answer. It seems she's grown rather fond of the idea of lessening the reliance on Iwa's ports. Kanoha, being the closest to Wave will be pivotal in this undertaking, both in regards to the trade rout itself, but also in protection of Wave until the building is complete."

The Hokage's attention was split between Darkus's explanation and the scroll itself that bore many other seals containing the amended proposals from the other lands. "You must have done a lot of traveling in order to gather all these up in less than a month."

He gave a shrug that Sarutobi missed as he unsealed Waterfall's proposal, his eyebrows raising slightly at some of the proposed trade items, things that had never been exported by the village before. "I suppose you could say that, however, the sealed messenger techniques that I have been given have helped a lot."

That caused a dry chuckle to roll through the room, "Still haven't learned any jutsu, eh?

The larger mans shoulders slumped at that, "You know I have issues with those things."

He gave a slight shooing motion at that, "Baa baa, don't worry about it, you're not the first ninja that couldn't use jutsu."

"I'm not a ninja, you know that."

Finally the Hokage looked into the younger man's eyes, "You could be you know."

He let out a bark of laughter at that, "Still not giving up on the recruiting speech, eh, Sarutobi?"

He gave a half shrug before unsealing Snow's proposal, "I see potential in you."

He waggled a finger at him, "Didn't I say that to you, once upon a time?"

The older man let out a sigh at that, "True, hard to believe that you haven't changed in all these years."

He laughed again, "Hey, don't hate the player, hate the game. So tell me, how are some of the youngling's holding up, Anko-chan and Iruka-kun?"

"Iruka-kun will be graduating in a few years; Anko-chan's graduation will actually be in a few weeks, I'm sure she'd like it if you could be there. Kurenai-chan made chunin about three months ago. Kikashi-kun…well, he's still getting over the loss."

Drakus's smile faded a bit at hearing of the young, silver haired ANBU. "It's never easy, loosing friends. As to Anko, if the council takes as long as it normally does then I'm sure I'll be here in time to see her graduate. Have you thought of who is going to be her sensei?"

"As of right now? Probably my old student Orochimaru, I think he will help in calming her down a bit. As of right now she almost gives young Naruto here a run for his money."

The young boy perked up at being brought into the conversation finally, "Oh come on! Anko-nee-chan is great! She doesn't need to change!"

Drakus smiled and patted the boy's shoulder, "I know kid, with energy like that she's a spitfire, I don't think any enemy could hold her down! Hiruzen-san, I trust those two are getting the funds I've set aside?"

The old Hokage let out a sigh at that, "Yes, although it's been…trying…to keep the council's hands out of it, you left them quite a bit you know."

The larger man's eyes darkened a bit at that, "You tell me if they try again, I'll make sure they never can again, this is the least I can do for them after that night."

The young blond looked up into the man's eyes, "What happened?"

"Naruto, that isn't something you should ask a stranger…"

The boy shrank again before the larger man smiled and waved off the Hokage, "It's alright 'Jii-Jii'" he chuckled at the older man's sour look, "Anko's parents were under my command during the Kyuubi attack. Of my squad I lost eight, I made sure that I left some money for their families; after all, it was my fault that they died that night. Iruka's parents were killed in rout to the shelters, like many. It's a hard lesson to learn pup, that no matter how strong you are you can't save them all. I started putting money aside a long time ago, to help those I lose under my command."

Naruto's eyes turned downwards at that, he had only met Anko a few times and while she had always seemed happy and really active he had seen a lot of that same loneliness he felt in her eyes. "So Kyuubi killed them…"

The larger man let out a sigh, "No kid, I killed them. When you take command of others, their lives are yours to guard, if the enemy kills one, it's because you put them in the wrong place. If they get sick, you didn't take care of them. If they get hurt, and don't receive treatment, then you didn't heal them."

Sarutobi's eyes hardened as he glared at the man across from him, "You put too much weight on your shoulders Drakus, it's not your fault that they died that night. None of us could have predicted that they Kyuubi would attack like that. He'd been our protector for so long, then to go berserk suddenly, and come barreling toward the village? Minato couldn't understand it any more than the rest of us. You yourself didn't have an explanation for it."

He ran a hand through his slightly-to-long-for-it's-style hair and let out a heavy sigh, "Let's not get into this Sarutobi-san, we'll be here all day and we still have other things to discuss, namely the pup here. What's going on in this village?"

The Hokage pulled his pipe from his robes before taking his time to fill it; it seemed he needed the time to collect his thoughts. "Naruto, could you please wait for me in my study? We won't be long."

Naruto stuck his lower lip out at that before his face lit up, "I'll do it, but only if you let me take the hat!"

The gathered men laughed aloud at that before the Hokage draped the large hat onto the young boy's head, a head that was promptly swallowed by the veils and the brim. He let out a whoop of joy before streaking into the adjoining study. Almost as soon as he was gone the older man's face hardened again, "How did you meet Naruto?"

"I found him sleeping in an alley, I'll assume from his clothing and underfed state that he's an orphan, as I prefer to think that he wasn't from that horrible a family."

He gave a nod as way of answer. "Yes, Naruto is an orphan, one that this town, unfortunately, is well aware of."

That made Drakus pause, "Old man, how old is the kid."

"He'll be turning seven come this-

The pair answered in unison, "October tenth…"

"Tell me everything Professor, what is it they have been doing to him, he looks no older than four when he's closer to seven, and if what I've seen is any indication he's sleeping on the street…"

"That's not something I was aware of, nothing crossed my desk save for some of the complaints from the villagers, claims of theft and vandalism, breaking and entering in one case, harassment."

"Tell me; was one of them from a restaurant?"

He nodded and reached into a file in his desk drawer, "There have been a few, in fact. This one from a dango stand that claims he put something in the batter. This one was from his favorite ramen stand, seems some of the other villigers were keeping him from entering the stand, Teunchi was, understandably, angered."

"Yes, we ate there before coming here, if I didn't know any better he was about to come over the counter at me if I didn't answer his questions right…"

He let out a laugh at that, "Yes, the Ichiraku's are quite protective of the boy, I seem to get an adoption request from them every week, but I'm afraid the council takes steps…" The larger man's hands tightened into fists tight enough to pop his knuckles, "The last one if from one of the slightly more upscale restaurants, one Udon's Grill and Dance, they claim he had ordered food and tried leave without paying the bill."

"Bullshit, he and I were there earlier, Naruto was caught trying to eat out of the garbage and was chased away, at least according to him." The old Hokage's hands not mirrored the man across from him.

"Tell me, Drakus, what's your interest here. I've never known you to do anything without reason."

"You said that the Ichiraku's were blocked from adopting him, can I see the paperwork, or the law, or whatever it is that your council is using to stop this."

Slightly annoyed at the man's outright avoidance in answering his question, but pushed the file towards him, "While you look that over I'll go keep Naruto company, a boy like him doesn't do well if left alone for too long." Drakus gave a grunt as he the Hokage left, slowly moving through the papers, searching for any little loophole he could find.

After several hours of rifling through files and council minuets he stood, his body popping in several, almost sickening ways as he stretched and moved to the study doors. He paused a moment, listening in to make sure he didn't interrupt any conversations they may have been having. "Hokage-sama, we need to talk, and I think the pup will need to hear this as well." The look in his eyes offered no room for discussion. Naruto had been sitting on the floor, listening as the Hokage read some of the history of the second Hokage. Naruto moved up to the small, two-seater sofa as Drakus pulled a chair from the outer room, placing it before the duo before grabbing his files and taking his seat.

"Tell me boy, what do you know of the attack seven years ago, by the Kyuubi no Yoko…"


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

A/N – Sorry about the wait, I don't have an excuse really, got caught up with reading other tales and with a few games up at the local game shop. My Dark Eldar aren't doing as well as of late as I would have hoped, their getting used to my play style, it seems. On the story front, I'll likely be handling a lot of the training and traveling portions via flashbacks, as I really don't think I need to go through every little occurrence both in that regard and in a lot of the cannon. You all know the story as well as I, probably more so as I have yet to get up to the time jump just yet via the manga, and have up to the twelfth box set with the anime, sets that I have yet to watch all of thus far due to lack of time on my part. For those that have questions just drop me a line and so long as it will not give away too much I'll let you know. I've gotten a few questions about Drakus I was happy to answer. As mentioned he is a character from a long running series of mine, not everything can be detailed in this story, as there is simply too much of it, I have a venerable forest of those five star notebooks filled with his adventures, and this is the first time I've bothered to type up any of it with the intent to post them. As to the pairings, I'm still taking suggestions and finally figured out how to put a poll on the profile, didn't think it would be that easy....Drakus' pairings, while not set, I'm keeping to myself, though I will say I'm considering Anko and Tayuya for two of his, simply because I think those two headbutting with eachother is going to be insanely fun ^_^

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter Three

* * *

The silence had been hanging in the air for almost a full ten minutes. If it were any other situation he would be laughing his ass off right now. Naruto's jaw was hanging agape as he stared at the large man seated across from him, Sarutobi, on the other hand, was glaring daggers, his mouth held in a thin, pale line. Drakus could see his mind was working hard, doing its best to come up with a way to handle damage control scenarios. Best case, the boy seated next to him would be mad. Worst case, his mind would fracture. Drakus, for his part, was waiting for a response from the blond headed boy, their next course of actions all hinged on what he would do.

They certainly didn't expect him to faint.

"Drakus…what were you thinking…"

His gaze hardened as he glared at the old man across from him, "The better question, Hokage-sama, is why you didn't tell him sooner. He has a right to know why he is treated this way. Beyond that, he needs to know how hard it was for his father to do that."

His posture shifted once more into the form of the Hokage, the normally relaxed slouch he had long forgotten as the unconscious need to assert his post became apparent. "So, you even knew about Minato."

His wolf grin flashed for a moment before he returned to the stone faced warrior that Sarutobi had known for so long. "You honestly think that he could have kept it hidden from me? Hell, their scents were all over each other. You would be foolish to assume that the Inuzuka do not know it as well. Little Naruto here's scent is so close to Minato's its eerie. I'll tell you now, if he opts to take me up on my offer, I will tell him. Everything. The Yodamei's foes from Iwa wouldn't dare to come after him so long as he is in my care. While they may want revenge, they won't risk the trade loss I could bring about. Always remember, the best way to bring down an enemy are through its people. You break their economy, then they with cow toe to the people that can rectify that."

If anything the Hokage's scowl intensified before he out a tired sigh, his eyes closing, "In some ways, I suppose you are correct. I hope you understand my reasoning, he's all we have left of the fourth."

His snort startled the elderly leader out of his thoughts, "What nonsense…" Sarutobi's eyebrow arched at that, "You know as well as I, if you keep their hopes and memories alive, they will never leave you."

A pair of warm smiles were the first thing Naruto saw when he awoke, for a moment he thought it was all a dream, but the expectant looks from the two men told him otherwise. After taking a moment to gather his wits he took a steadying breath, it wasn't everyday you learned you have a giant fox inside of you. "J-Jii-Jii?" The old man perked up, "Do…do you know why he did it…I mean, why he picked me?"

He let out a long sigh, but before he could answer Naruto felt the large hand of the fur clad man grasp his shoulder. "Naruto, he and I both know why, and honestly, in his shoes, I probably would have done the same. However, before we tell you, I have an offer to make." Naruto just waited for him to continue, the curiosity starting to make him fidget. "Naruto, what is your dream?"

He chanced a glance at the man next to him, getting a warm smile in return before he screwed up his courage, he really didn't feel like getting laughed at again, especially not by someone that he was coming to like. "Well…" Drakus gave him the same look that Naruto had given him a moment ago, "I-I want to be Hokage! That way all the villagers will have to look up to me and respect me!"

While the elderly man next to him beamed with pride, Drakus instead looked on with strange neutrality, as thought he didn't care, one way or the other. "So, you want to be the village leader…"

"YA!"

"And what would you do when you become the leader?"

Naruto cocked his head slightly at that, not really understanding the question. "I…I don't know, what do you do Jii-Jii?" Drakus's face became obscured with a frown.

"Naruto, you cannot think that way. If you wish to lead, you have to do so with purpose. The Second, he wanted to make a place where his people could prosper, so he created the forests here. The Third, " He gestured to the man across from him, "He wanted to bring about an era of peace by ending the second war. The Fourth, like the third, sought to end the third war. Do you understand what I'm getting at?"

He seemed to think for a moment, the grandfatherly figure at his left giving Drakus another hard look, he didn't like that he was seemingly tearing down the boy's dream, even if he had a feeling he knew what he was getting at by pushing Naruto like this.

"I…I think I understand. The others, you Jii-Jii, you did it to help people. Then I'll do that! I'll become the Hokage so I can help and protect everyone!"

After another moment being stone faced Drakus grinned widely and slapped the boy on the shoulder, a bit too hard, as he slammed rather painfully into the Hokage who laughed at the boy's slightly dazed look. "Great answer pup! Protect the people. I just hope when the time comes you decided to try and help everyone, not just those of Leaf. There is a reason I have the status I do. I don't favor a side, and as such, they look to me to help with some issues as a neutral party. Now then, while I can't make any guarantees, I think I have a lot to offer you, if you're willing to take me up on the offer."

"W-What would I have to do?"

"Oh, well that's easy…"

"Well?"

With a face splitting grin he leaned forward, clapping his hands in excitement, "Leave the village!"

It took a long moment for both the Hokage and the young boy to compose themselves before they could even bring themselves to answer him.

"WHAT!!!"

He winced at the roar, before raising his hands, doing his best to placate the duo, "Now now, I know what you're thinking…"

"You want me to leave the village!"

"Of course, I can't train you properly in this city, not to mention my duties with the other nations. I mean, the first leg of the training is survival training, in conditions much harsher than those you find in this simple forest. That said, I will be needing some materials from you, Sarutobi, as I don't know anything about being a ninja beyond chakra control and assassination techniques."

"B-But I can't just leave!"

"Why?"

"Drakus, please be reasonable, you must know the council will never allow you to just take him."

His gaze grew stern as he eyes the Hokage, "And why wouldn't they?"

"He's a citizen of this village, you can't just take him, it would be tantamount to kidnapping."

His grin returned to him once more as he leaned in, "That's where your wrong old friend." He reached into some of the files that he had brought from the outer office. "If I've interpreted these council minuets correctly, Naruto was never made a citizen of Kanoha."

Naruto had to cover his ears at that outraged roar of his leader as the file was snatched from the hands of the furred man across from him, his eyes a near blur as he flew through the records. While not obvious, there were several discrete rulings that seemed to hint to certain requirements to be an official citizen of the village, at least to be born one, namely that you had to have at least two witnesses to the birth, witnesses that Naruto did not have, his mother had died in childbirth, his father had been in his compound's study, designing the seal. Lastly, almost too conveniently, the doctor and attending nurse had been killed when a section of the hospital had collapsed, however, their bodies were never found. According to this, Naruto didn't even exist, his birth certificate lost with the doctor. The rulings of the council had never bothered to address this particular issue, however, it had always come down to a vote, but why, it would have been so much easier to just point out this damned law.

"From what I understand, old friend, they were probably saving this to keep him from the academy when the time came. Until then the civilian council can simply vote down your petitions, once he was of age he would come under the shinobi sector, but you can't become a ninja of the village if you're not a citizen, eh?" His own eyes darkened at the raw sorrow radiating from the boy. "However, this can be good for us, in this instance…" The two perked up at that, "This boy, according to your own records, doesn't exist, while he could then be taken in by that lovely family at the ramen stand, they could come back to haunt them, as the council could make rulings against them."

"I would never let that happen!" Drakus was more than a little surprised at the shout that came from both of them, they unanimous burning gazes, to him, a portent of the future.

"Child, while I admire your spirit, there is little you could do. Sarutobi-sama would have a better chance, but he is still only one vote against the whole of the council. No, for this were going to have to go higher…"

"Oh course, you can go to the Fire Lord." He was beginning to see the pattern here.

He gave a slow nod, "However, it could still be seen as favoritism, and according to my oaths I cannot take such actions. Also, so long as the council has its say, the pup will be unable to even apply for citizenship." The pair seemed to deflate a bit at that. "That said…" He waited for the pair to lean forward once more, Goddesses he loved his games. "It wouldn't be seen as playing favorites if I was doing a favor for my son, now would it?"

A soft smile played across the elderly leader's features as the boy next to him went wide eyed. "Y-You…"

"Only if you want to Naruto, I'll not force you, and I don't expect an answer right away, I'll be in town for at least a week, so why don't we just hang out for a while, and then we will see if you can put up with me."

"Drakus, how would this be any more legal? The Fire Lord would still require a birth certificate."

"That's where you come in old friend. When does your academy allow its students to graduate?"

Sarutobi took a moment to pack and light his pipe, the scent of the sweet smoke filling the room, oddly comforting to the trio, "As of right now, between thirteen and fourteen, however, that was under the previous doctrine on the third war, the next graduating classes will be kept an additional three to four years for some expanded curriculum. It seems that, according to many of the instructors, while we are producing superb shinobi, we are not producing good citizens as they are having trouble acclimation to these times of peace. As such, we are starting some new courses in hopes of offering alternate incomes to those that wish to retire."

He gave a curt nod before turning to Naruto, "Pup, if you choose to accept my offer, we will have about nine years to get you up to snuff, and the old monkey here will have that much time to get the paperwork pushed through to allow you to take the graduation exam. In that time, in addition to training you, I will have to convince the Fire Lord to overrule the council in regards to your citizenship. While she owes me a favor or two, I think we will still have to impress her, so I'll have you for three years before we make our way to the capitol. I won't lie to you boy, my training will be hell, but in the end you will be a superb soldier. I'll then have another six years to make you into a shinobi." He took a deep breath before letting his great weight fall back into the chair, the old wood groaning and flexing at his weight. "But, were getting ahead of ourselves, ya? You don't know me, and I don't know you. So, let's get out of the Hokage's hair and go get some dinner. Old man, want us to get you anything? I have a feeling you're going to be working late tonight."

Sarutobi groaned and hid his face in his hand, he didn't even want to think of the paperwork that would be waiting for him when he returned to his office. "Yes, dango, sake, maybe some sweet red bean soup. I'm afraid Anko-chan has gotten me addicted to the combination…"

The trio chuckled at the thought before they rose and headed back into the main office. Drakus waited for the two to exchange goodbyes before moving to the door, the pair were almost out of sight of the secretaries' desk when the attending man heard himself called into the office. That put a smirk on the strange duo's faces as they descended the tower, they could only hope that miserable prat got his.

"So, Naruto, do you know of any place to get these dumplings at?"

He once more looked a bit nervous at the giant next to him, "W-Well ya…but-"

"They treat you like the other places, I suppose…" His scowl could have caused the paint on the walls to peel.

"Well, kinda, when Doyo-san is working everything is okay, but when his other worker is there she makes her dog attack me…" Naruto's head turned away, trying to hide the budding tears that threatened to spill down his cheeks.

Drakus had the sense to pretend not to notice; instead he waited for him to compose himself a bit before turning and kneeling before the boy. "Naruto, even if you don't decide to take me up on my offer, I want you to take this." He reached once more into his cloak, affording Naruto another glimpse of the strange armor he wore, before he pulled out the same dagger that he had used to defend himself against the Hokage. The blade, while a dagger in Drakus' hands, was closer to a sword to Naruto.

Overall, it was elegant in its simplicity. The whole of the blade, sheath and all, was metal, not something that you usually saw in weapons like this. The sheath itself had strange symbols down each flat. A long, braided leather strap coming from the tip, probably to wrap around your leg or forearm, belt loop straps close to the top, the handle of the dagger seemed to be wood, but it was wrapped in the same leather, the normal tan material black with use. The butt of the blade looked to have a pale blue gem, cut to a diamond shape, giving an extra point to strike from; around the gem was another leather thong connection to a furred tail of sorts, a deep brown fur that was startlingly soft to the touch. With a shaking hand he gave a tug to the handle, at once a sharp 'ting' rang through the stairwell followed by the tall tale sound of metal on metal as the blade came free. With every inch that revealed itself his eyes widened, the blade itself seemed to shine in the dim stairwell, its silvered surface catching the light at odd angles as the same symbols shone with a dull blue glow. The edge itself was keen, not a chip or scuff could be seen along the gleaming metal. The boy held it firmly in hand, it seemed too light for its size, as he gave it a test swing, the soft song of metal parting the air was strangely calming to the duo.

"It's…"

"Beautiful?" Naruto gave a quick nod before moving to re-sheath it, only to be stopped by the large hand of the man before him. He gave his wolf grin once more to the boy before Naruto's free hand in his. "Boy, do you trust me?" It took several moments, but he gave a nod, almost at once he took Naruto's hand and pressed his hand hard into the edge, the metal biting deep, Nartuo immediately let out a yelp of pain and pulled away from him, a look of betrayal on his face as his eyes filled with tears once more. Drakus held up his hands in defense for a moment, trying to calm the boy. "Hey, no tears now, I had purpose in that, pass your thumb along the runes. The blade is yours now; you just have to make it so."

Naruto looked at him in confusion for several long moments before he swiped his hand along the flat of the blade. For a moment it seemed like nothing happened, then symbols glow changed from its normal soothing blue, to a strange, deep purple. The glow seemed to pulse for a moment before a silver flame snaked up the flat of the blade, seeming to devour the blood before the glow returned to normal. Naruto's eyes were wide in mixed awe and fear at the blade, not sure what to make of it.

"Well, you're full of surprises pup, that blade doesn't just accept anyone. It's been mine since I forged it when I was still a young man, now; it looks like it's yours. Those runes give the blade many unique properties. It will never need sharpening and in all my years I haven't been able to so much as chip it. As you saw, the blade will do it's best to clean itself, and depending on what it 'eats' it will take on unique properties. Right now, of the ten runes that blade bares only four are used, well, five now. The first two give the strength and the ever-keen edge. The third is when I bound it to me, for me, causes ice to form on the surface it strikes. The fourth is when I was forced to use the dagger when disarmed in a fight, stabbing the…creature, which was attacking my teacher. That rune will make it so that when you swing the blade with the proper intention, the intention to kill, that the force will be increased several fold, it holds the desire to take life. The last one is your own, we will have to wait until later to find out what your rune will hold for you, boy, for now, FOOD!"

With a whoop Drakus turned and headed down the stairs, leaving the stunned blond in his wake.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

A/N – A big thanks to my bud Whitedragon17 for his review, I've been bouncing my chapters off of him as of late and he pointed out something rather important I had been leaving out for some odd reason (I blame the late hours I've been keeping…) and I intend to fix that, honestly, I don't know how I missed it. Oh, and as it may throw a few people, I'll be saying 'sword' and 'knife' a lot here, you all saw it in the last chapter, to Naruto, the dagger may as well be a sword for its size, to Drakus, it's his belt knife.

Poll is still up and will be for a good bit of time in all likelihood, as the true pairings will not be appearing until they have come back to the village (Honestly, did anyone NOT see Naruto going with him? That said, he still doesn't trust him, I don't see trust ever coming easily for someone like Naruto) I'd honestly forgotten Hana initially, but I'm not going to put her up there unless I get a few requests, I don't know much about the character really, making her flexible, but the same can be said for many of the girls, as they seem to be focused a bit more heavily on Naruto/Sauske for the most part (and understandably so, being rivals) however, I tend to prefer a strong female character in these tales, and Sakura never really fit the bill in my mind, hell, Shizune is more so, and she is mostly reprimanding Tsunade… Anyway, enough rambling, let's get on with it ya? I'm going to be using line breaks to help keep things a bit more orderly, usually to show they they are going from person to person when they are a bit further away from one-another.

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 4

* * *

Okay...how was this guy doing it…

The young blonds' movements were near frantic as he dodged left and right through the crowd, and still the only thing he had to go by was the night-black furred cloak that Drakus wore. Dodging between another set of legs, an act that sent the person stumbling and shouting words the Hokage told him never to use he managed to get closer. It was almost as if the man was playing a game with him, trying to see how much he wanted to follow.

"SLOW DOWN!"

Yellow eyes appeared over his shoulder as he looked back at the gasping boy, still he didn't break stride, instead reaching with one massive hand for the boy to follow, urging him to catch up. "Pup, did you forget? Were on a mission for the Hokage. If you want to be in charge one day then you have to lead, pick up the pace!"

Naruto's step faltered for a moment as that little fact hit him; this really was a mission from the Hokage, the God of Shinobi! With a whoop of joy he ducked into an ally, pausing long enough to sling the dagger across his back, the brilliant blue gem shining above his left shoulder like he had seen the mask wearing tower guards wearing before dashing back into the streets, his mind racing as he tried to recall where they were supposed to be going…Dango!

With a sudden burst of speed Naruto took a running leap at a nearby lamp pole and, using the momentum, ran a few steps up the surface to gain a bit of height before he latched on with arms and legs, startling several of the patrons on what he had dubbed 'Market Street'. Spotting the larger man was easy enough, the crowd seemed to be giving him a wide birth, many of them then stopping to chat about the odd man. He was quick to put the scene out of his mind as he started looking for a shortcut, he had to catch up!

Drakus smirked as he caught the shock of blond hair above the crowd, it was easy enough to spot after all, not many had blond hair in this city. As he made a turn he decided to move his thoughts onto other matters, letting his senses keep track of the boy along with one partition of his mind. 'I see the boy knows better than to stick to the main roads when heading off a target, good…now let's see how he adapts…' His grin grew once more as he returned his full attention to the boy; an absent part of his gathering attention noting the hairs rising on the back of his neck, Sarutobi must be using his toy again. As he was debating on heading toward the scent of the dumplings his ears twitched, picking up an odd group of voices. He paused for a moment, the blond taking the chance to get closer, before he made a sharp turn down an alley, his brow furrowing at what he had heard. An errant thought ran through his head just before his grin turned feral, 'I wonder how Naruto will handle this…'

* * *

The blond had a problem.

His problem was simple.

However, it was also quite large.

He had run into a group of people that he knew usually went well out of their way to bully others at the park, one reason why he would avoid the place at times. How, you may ask, would he run into such people when he was moving down a busy street? It was simple; he had dodged to a side street to make better time by not fighting the flow of foot-traffic when he had spotted them. There, on a bench not far away, was a young girl a few years younger than himself currently huddled in an upright fetal position, her face buried in her knees as her shoulders shook, a shock of pink hair further obscuring her features. Surrounding her were a group of girls, all currently chanting something he couldn't really make out, toward the back her saw another girl being held back by the group, struggling fruitlessly against the more numerous hands and arms, her blond hair having been pulled from the ponytail at some point in her struggles. Not so foolish as to rush in he inched forward and hid himself behind a trashcan to listen in.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!"

The apparent leader of the group ignored the shout as she picked up a sick and used it to lift the pinkette's bangs from her eyes, a satisfied smirk forming on her features as she saw the tear streaked face flinch away from the group.

"Honestly Megumi, have you ever seen a head that big before? I mean, seriously, are they going to use your head to carve the next Hokage face, it looks like it'd fit."

"I don't know Ami, I think they would have too much room leftover…" the whole of the group let out a loud laugh as the huddled form let out another choked sob. She heard her friend call out to her again only to be silenced by a grunt of pain.

That finally jarred the pink haired girl from her sadness as she heard a thud from the back of the girls, "INO! What happened!? Ino!?"

"The pig's the least of your problems, billboard brow…" Ami's hands tightened on the stick as her eyes grew hard; she had been in the academy for a year now and was looking forward to trying out some of her budding kenjutsu skills. As her off hand came to grip the stick in a basic forward stance there was a shout of alarm from the girls in the back of the group, she had only begun to turn as she felt the impact on the back of her knees before she saw only sky, then a sharp 'thud' echoed through her head as darkness took her.

Naruto's eyes hardened as he saw one of the girls holding the blond drive her knee into her stomach, folding the girl like a chair before she dropped to her knees, then her side with a dull thud. He had seen them push others before, taking advantage of their size and numbers to push others around, but he had never seen them go this far. The one that had struck the now downed Ino took a moment to grind her loose hair into the dirt underfoot as she turned back to the others, laughing at their easy win. He felt his hands clench into fists as the one with the stick seemed to be moving closer to the girl on the bench. He didn't even feel himself move at first, all he knew was that he was there, kneeling beside the downed blond before he took the chance on pushing her towards the trashcan he had just darted from, her prone form rolling with a pained groan as Naruto dashed between the girls as fast as he could before launching himself into the legs of the leader.

As his back slammed painfully into the bench it took him a moment to realize what had happened, he had knocked her cleanly off of her feet and had come to a jarring stop, his head still spinning. He was worried for a the briefest of moments as the girl he just knocked down wasn't moving, however, seeing she was still gripping the stick he pushed that thought aside as he rose on shaky legs. "Hey…" He got no answer, "HEY!" The pinkette looked up with a start to see a boy dressed in rags, a large sword strapped to his back, "Are you alright?"

She gave a nod in answer as the shock began to wear off the crowd. Megumi's face was a mask of anger; her shaggy brown hair obscuring her face tattoos slightly, the twin streaks under slit eyes marking her as part of the clan he had seen around town, a clan with dogs. "W-What did you do!? YOU KILLED AMI!"

Naruto fought the urge to run at the feral girl's roar, she wasted little time in drawing a pair of kunai from a hip pouch as she moved to stand over her downed friend. Naruto spared a moment to look back at the girl on the bench only to growl in annoyance, it seems her shout had caused the girl to shrink back into herself once more. As his eyes moved back to his soon to be opponent his eyes caught the gleam of an ice blue gem, causing them to go wide in realization, for once in his life, he wasn't defenseless! He could fight! He could save them!

* * *

Drakus was watching the scene unfold from a rooftop with a critical eye, the boy was rough, but he had potential. He had avoided rushing into the situation without thinking, managed to get one victim to partial safety, take out the leader of the group with an apparent knockout, and was now defending the pink one against an armed opponent. He saw the edges of the boy's mouth twitch towards becoming a smile as he eyes his new dagger. Drakus was no fool, he saw how this was about to get grossly out of control, but he also picked up another scent in the air; it seems he wasn't the only one interested in this fight.

"You're not going to stop this?"

He smiled softly at the sound of the familiar, slightly rough female voice. He could hear a tint of amusement there, but part of him was wondering at what it was directed at, the upcoming fight, or himself. "Not in the slightest, he's defending an innocent and believes he's all alone, what better way to learn?"

A slightly exasperated snort met his ears as the figure stepped closer, a shock of wild brow hair dominating the figure as a large dog moved up beside them. "You were never one for the easy lessons, were you Drakus…"

"Nope, but neither were you, Tsume." She let out a bark of laughter at that before her face grew stern at the sight of Naruto drawing the dagger.

"That's your knife…"

He grinned once more at the scene before him as the pair were staring one another down, each refusing to make the first move. The remaining girls were all backing away, forming a semicircle around them. "Not my knife anymore, it accepted the boy. Now tell me, are you going to do something about this, that girl's in your clan."

Rather than answering he saw the woman begin to run through hand signs before whispering, "Tsuchi Bunshin no Jutsu!" At once a small tide of earth, unnoticed by the group below them, rose up and created a perfect copy of the Inuzuka matriarch, another half seal from Tsume and the bunshin was shrouded in smoke before fading to reveal a second Megumi. After a moment of eyeing the scene they saw the girl moving in to attack, crouched low as per the family style, however, just as the girl was about to strike home there was a puff of smoke beside the older pair and Megumi found herself falling from the rooftop, only to be caught by her ankle by her clan head, whether her eyes were wide in fear of the fall, or Tsume was something that he would leave for later debate.

* * *

Naruto twisted the blade sideways in an effort to keep the twin daggers from finding their marks, sending one high and the other low as he spun, trying to use the sudden motion to confuse the girl before him. He brought the butt of the sword around fast, trying to catch the girl in the head and maybe knock her out like he had her friend, the move was useless as the girl had dropped low, lashing out with her left foot to sweep him. Naruto gave a short hop to avoid the blow but didn't expect her to stop the motion below him. She shot straight into the air with that foot leading, catching the blond boy in the chin as she back flipped into the air.

Naruto landed hard on his shoulders and neck, his vision filled with stars as he hit the bench behind him, ending up beside the shaken pinkette. With a groan he shook his head clear of the lights as he rolled to the side, pulling the sitting girl into an embrace as a pair of thrown kunai lodged where the pair had been. Jumping back to his feet he pushed the girl behind him further, doing his best to shield her with his body, "Hey…"

The pink haired girl looked at the boy in fear, "W-W-W-"

"What's your name?"

"S-Sakura…"

He gave a short nod, "I got that other girl out of the way already, get to her, and run."

"Why are you helping us?"

Her eyes widened as she saw strangely sad, but kind blue eyes lock on hers, "Because I'm going to be Hokage, and the Hokage protects his people." It wasn't said with any kind of bravado, just a calm statement, as though it had already happened and was the most common knowledge in the world. Unknown to them a smirk from a nearby roof grew into a wild grin. "You go left, I'll go right."

Naruto lowered his sword so that the tip was hovering over the ground trailing behind him when, with a shout of, "NOW!" he dashed with all the speed he could muster toward Megumi, slanting to the right as, after a second's hesitation, Sakura ran to the left, making a bee line for her downed friend. Every other step Naruto took the tip of the sword struck the cement, trailing a finely gouged line and a shower of sparks. With a roar that had the matriarch's grin matching Drakus' he swung the blade up at his opponent. Both of the older duo's eyes widened in surprise as the move seemed to be much too fast for someone his size. The blade, however, didn't find its mark as she brought a kunai up to block, only to have her eyes go wide as the kunai was sliced neatly in half, before her eyes were forced to slits at a burst of icy air, as her vision returned she saw that the remains of the kunai, and her hand, were suddenly encased in ice, at once the cold bit deep, earning a scream of pain from the young girl and rendering her right hand useless. With a snarl she spun to follow Naruto's mad dash, making a weak swing at the passing blond before dropping to one knee, cradling her hand to her chest. She, Naruto, Sakura and the now awake Ino all stared in shock at the now frozen limb as she slammed it into the cement repeatedly, not even managing a crack in the thick ice.

"What the FUCK did you do to my HAND!?"

Naruto began to shake at the scene before him before his eyes darted to the sword still in hand, he could see the first four of the symbols blazing purple and froze, Drakus' words echoing in his head, _'when you swing the blade with the proper intention, the intention to kill, the force will be increased several fold, it holds the desire to take life.' _ Had he really wanted to…kill her?

* * *

"Tsume, I have a test for the pup…"

* * *

Megumi snarled at Naruto as she drew a brace of shuriken and drew back, her body bowing almost to the breaking point before she brought them forward with her full bodyweight behind them…straight at Sakura and Ino.

Naruto's eyes were wide in horror as he saw the intended target as he sprung forward with strength he didn't know he had, covering the ten meter distance with startling speed for a boy his size, he was only a few meters from them when her hand snapped forward and let the blades fly, with a last jump he managed to dive in the way, landing on the ground hard and skidding to a stop, gasping for air as blood poured from shredded knees and elbows.

Naruto rolled onto his back with another groan of pain, the skinned limbs already healing as he struggled into a kneeling position, looking back at Ino and Sakura in terror, the shuriken hadn't hit him, so surely…

The sound of clapping drew the trio's attention as Megumi was momentarily forgotten as they looked to the source, a pair of adults standing on a nearby rooftop. One, a massive man adorned in a fur cloak had been the one clapping, at his side was a slightly older looking woman with a massive dog, tied securely to the animal, hog style complete with gag, was Megumi. The trio looked from the bound woman to the one with the frozen hand in time to see her turn into large sections of dirt before crumbling into nothingness on the concrete. The large man stepped smoothly off the rooftop and dropped the short, at least for him, distance to the ground, the echoing sound of steel on stone ringing through the emptying street. The original group of girls were quick to make their escapes, seeing the pair of truly terrifying adults.

"Well well pup, it seems you have some teeth after all…"

Naruto led the blade drop limply in his hands, not releasing it, but letting the relief run through him at the thought of safety, "Y-You were watching?"

The duo smirked at the young blond as Drakus advanced on him, clasping his shoulder in a large hand, "Ya kid, and you did a great job for someone so young. Tsume, you say that girls' in the academy?"

The woman and her partner dropped silently to the earth beside him, an annoyed sigh escaping her, "Yes she is, first year. I'll be having words with her and her mother when I get back to the compound, believe that."

He let out a snort as he made to pull Nartuo onto his shoulder, only to feel a hand on his wrist. He looked down at the boy only to see his eyes hidden by his bangs, he seemed to be shaking slightly, "Why didn't you help…"

Naruto was a bit surprised to see the large man kneel before him, placing his other hand on the hilt of the dagger, "Tell me pup…what did you feel when you remembered the knife?"

Blue eyes met yellow where the widened slightly, he had yet to see Drakus this serious, even in the restaurant there was a level of playfulness in his eyes. These were different; he had seen eyes like this from some of the people in the mobs, people that were so beaten down by life that they had nothing left. However, beyond that, there was a level of curiosity, and a hint at the other Drakus that he had met that morning. Looking down at the sword in his hand he saw the symbols' glow had faded and for the first time he was noticing the angle at which his arm was hanging, and the rapidly growing burning in his shoulder. Pushing it aside for a moment he looked back into the yellow eyes and felt a slight smile grow, "I…I felt…"

"You felt…"

He reached over and took the dagger in his other hand, letting the seemingly useless right arm hang, it was not the first time he had a limb that refused to function, "I felt like…a Hokage."

After a moment both Tsume and Drakus let out barks of laughter, the pair almost reduced to rolling on the ground, as the pair tried to regain their composure Sakura helped Ino over towards the boy who was now sheathing the knife once more. "Um…uh…T-Thank you…Thank you for helping us."

The older duo's eyes narrowed slightly as the boy, with a motion that looked like it had far too much practice, pulled his right arm up into his shirt and with a few quick twists created a makeshift sling for the damaged limb. He gave a pained smile at the young girls before leaning into Drakus's hands. "It's not a big deal; you would have done the same right? She was trying the whole time, I just got lucky…" He had pointed for a moment at Ino before pulling back to scratch the back of his head with a blush. Before the young pair could answer there was a shout of alarm coming from down the street, at once sever sets of eyes turned to the end of the street to see a woman with strangely familiar features pointing and screaming for help, the group looked at one another for a moment before looking to the downed girl and groaned, it was Ami's mother.

Naruto felt himself lifted onto Drakus' shoulder's once more with a grin, "Well ladies, I think that's the signal for us to go! Naruto, let's get to the tower, we have a mission to complete." To accent the statement he held up a large box that gave off the sweet scent of dumplings before leaping to the rooftop once more. "Pup, hold on, were going to have to make this quick!"

Naruto only had time to look at him with slight confusion before the world started to blur past him, a scream of surprise and fear carrying though the Hidden Leaf Village.

A/N2 – Ok, before anyone gets any idea, no, the mud clone was not fighting at full strength, wouldn't be much of a test for a jonin to take on a civilian kid, now would it? She approximated Magumi's skills so she could have a bit of a show. Drakus' test should be rather obvious, so ya…

Got an introduction to Ino and Sakura here, Sakrua is still sans the ribbon, so she is getting picked on still, the whole situation escalating is more common that many would prefer to think, egged on by a crowd people can do anything, when coupled with the fact that kids can be some of the most cruel things in existence, I think whacking someone with a stick is a small stretch. While it's not expressly said here, Tsume and Drakus do know oneanother, that will be explained later on.

In all honestly, I wrote two versions of this chapter, this one and one where they instead make it to Anko, however, I wanted to establish Naruto a bit more before moving on to some of the other characters, so I'm thinking I'm going to have to re-write the first draft to fit into the slot of the fifth chapter. While this should make the next part come out faster, I make no promises, as I've been drafted into a Bloodbowl league and have to get my team built and ready to go by Thursday…eleven players plus name and other bits, we'll see how well I manage…I'm looking at an undead team, but can't decide which one I want to play yet…


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

A/N – LoPe21 broached the idea of keeping Megumi around, if you all are interested in an OC Inuzuka then let me know, as of right now she will be little more than a potential antagonize or perhaps a fan girl, he made a good point on the pack mentality of the clan and it's something that I will need to address. On the flip side she, herself, didn't get beaten, it was Tsume's mud clone henged that fought. Of course, that can easily be changed, after all, they still have some time in the village, and an Inuzuka is nothing if not stubborn.

This chapter I had wanted to belt out quickly, I had the mental image boring into my head earlier and decided to get it down and posted before I had forgotten it.

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 5

* * *

He was the Hokage.

Leader of one of, if not the, most powerful hidden village in the Elemental Nations.

So how had it come to this…

There, before his very desk, stood one of the most respected ambassadors in their world. A warrior who had selflessly aided in the defense of his lands when the Kyuubi had attacked, and who was offering to take the village pariah in as his son.

And right now, he had one of the village Elders by the throat, lifted two feet off the ground to bring the elderly man to his eye level, and seemed to be trying to bore a hole through the man's head with his glare. In his other he had an ANBU's head palmed, gripping him by the crown, the pressure from the steel-girded grip forcing the man to his knees.

The day had started so nicely too…

Sarutobi spared a glance at the currently cowering boy, sparing him a reassuring smile before his features hardened, the sound of his clearing throat only just managed to reach over the growling giant before the aged leader. The gathered members of the council, alerted ANBU and ambassador all turned to face the Hokage, although he noted with annoyance that Drakus was refusing to drop the two men, the ANBU striking the larger man's wrist time and again while his teammate struggled a bit, in him mind, more pathetically as his body was moved to dangle before the desk.

"Drakus…what do you think you are doing?"

"Aggressive negotiations, Hokage-sama."

He let out a sigh, pulling the veiled hat from his brow and dropped it onto Naruto before running a hand over his head. This had all started so well. He had been sitting with a group of the clan heads discussing the manpower issues in increasing the number of patrols when he heard a tapping at the window, revealing the grinning face of Drakus and a battered, but smiling Naruto, each holding an item sporting the logo of a local dumpling shop. He'd let them in and after a brief exchange had asked them to wait in his study. That's when it all went downhill.

With utter disregard for the office his former teammates and a slew of the civilian council, the group flanked by ANBU, had barged in. Apparently, according to his former teammate Homura, the 'demon' had assaulted a group of citizens who were on their way to the park. The boy had seemingly acquired a 'huge sword' according to a girl who was now in the hospital and had attacked when they had paused to sit on a park bench to enjoy the wonderful day they had been graced with.

Sarutobi had wondered for a moment how many re-writes this script had gone through when Drakus had stepped forward to offer testimony, apparently, the girl's mother didn't take kindly to her daughter being called a 'worthless coward who had attacked civilians only because she had numbers on her side, yet still felt the need to be armed with a club while beating a hostage'.

All he'd wanted was some Dango…

The current situation had been a bit more…sensitive…Before he was able to comment on the incident the group had spotted a shock of blond hair that had been hiding behind the desk, what followed caused the others to gasp in shock. The Elder had ordered an ANBU to 'Remove the Demon from their sight!' and when he moved to round the desk he was stopped by Drakus' hand on his shoulder to try and stop him so that he could explain things better, earning a kunai glancing off his bracer for his trouble, Drakus had then forced the man to his current position with a growl of annoyance. The Elder had then seen fit to try and order Drakus to stand down and accented the statement with a poke to the chest and another few choice words about the boy.

He didn't get them all out before he found himself in his current predicament. However, it was Drakus' roar that had driven the council to silence.

"You have the AUDACITY to call my SON a DEMON! If I hear anything from you, WORD ONE, then by the All Father I will show you the FURY of the Sons of Russ!"

The gathered council, Sarutobi, and the once cowering Naruto had all gaped at the man. Now, with his cloak fully opened he looked all the more imposing. The black fur acted the perfect backdrop for the shining, silvered-grey armor the man wore. The many sets of eyes went from hair to boots taking in the spectacle before them. The man was tall, that much was a given, but with his body finally revealed they could truly understand just how large the man was. His arms, while well built for strength, were toned and hardened to look more like stone than flesh. His shoulders looked broad enough to sport two fully grown men comfortably despite the armor and his legs looked more like the trunks of trees rather than limbs.

The armor itself seemed to be made for faster, more agile movements despite his size, consisting of more of a breastplate that had several solid plates interlaced with a fine mesh to cover the abdomen, the heavy plate belt extending down the thighs and groin to offer a bit more protection. The massive shoulder plates extended to partially cover his chest and back while reaching to the mid-upper arm. The plates had a startling amount of detail molded into the design, a number of wolf heads etched, sculpted and painted pitch black with gray highlights adorned the right, yellow eyes staring as a doll's from atop what looked to be parchment that trailed down his arm, an odd language written along it's yellowed length while the left sported an oddly shaped plate. That item had set many on edge, as it was painted to make it seem like a clan's symbol, large checkers of white and red, the upper-right checker sporting a great golden skull with a set of wings coming off of it, the lower-left checker had a similar skull, though set in the upper portion of what looked like a gold bar that flared at the top and bottom, a few odd points along the flat. All in all the odd plate could only be described in one way, old, it looked immeasurably old. At his forearms and ankles were a set of bracers and greaves that led to equally solid looking gloves and boots, the matching sets had the same, snarling wolf head, symbols along its face. Simple looking grey pants covered his legs while what looked like metal fishnet covered his arms. Other accessories seemed to cover the whole of the armor, several amulets, furs and wax seals with the same yellowed parchment, at his right bracer was another dagger, a finer looking blade, and smaller than the one the blond now sported, with symbols that differed from the ones on the rest the armor. It looked to be more of a trophy. Those closer to him, the now held men, if they had been looking more closely would see he had many of the armor's symbols seemingly carved into the skin of his forearms.

All in all it had been a wonder that they hadn't heard him moving with all that metal. Yet he had moved so fast…

Naruto, however, looked to be feeling several different things. He was in awe of the behemoth before him; he imagined that this is what the Second Hokage must have looked like in his armor, massive, imposing. He looked like he could fight a bear and come out on top! However this man, who now had one of the masked men on his knees in pain, had been laughing and joking with him earlier, he had given him a way to protect himself.

He had called him his son…that made him feel strange, kinda warm, like when Jii-Jii picked him up.

"Drakus…if you would be so kind…" The larger man saw the Hokage gesture from the corner of his eye and let out an annoyed huff before he dropped the Elder. "And my ANBU?"

"Can the pup stay?"

"Of course, though I ask that you wait in my study, I'll be along once I have cleared up this matter."

Drakus clapped his free hand across his chest in an odd salute before he gave the ANBU one last squeeze for good measure, then turned to Naruto and motioned for him to follow; the pair were almost through the door before the shouting began.

"Sarutobi, what is the meaning of this! That man is claiming to be the d-the boy's father!?" The strangled rasp from the still recovering elder was hard to make out over the din of the others.

The closing door paused for a moment, letting shadowed silhouette linger for a moment as he turned, letting his profile be seen, it looks as though two sets of eyes stared back, both yellowed, soul piercing sets of orbs, and for a moment it was hard to tell which set belong to the man, and which belonged to the wolf. "Old friend, I think you need to put your house in order." The statement was calm, wreathed in a cold that seemed to linger in the now vacant doorway.

The elderly leader scowled for a moment, Drakus had a point.

"The Ambassador put in a request to adopt young Naruto earlier this morning after bringing quite a lucrative trade offer to us from Suna. It seems after his arrival he found him sleeping in an alleyway; apparently he had been removed from the orphanage earlier in the week, something I intend to investigate later on." A poignant stare at the head of the appointed orphan re-integration program was not unnoticed as the man visibly flinched.

"Very well, let's see the petition and we can make a decision before moving on to the thing's punishment."

Sarutobi scowled at Koharu hard before folding his hands before him, resting his elbows on the desk. "First of all, you interrupted a private security meeting with my advisors to demand a resolution to a civilian matter. Now you are presuming guilt before knowing all the facts, seemingly egger to disregard an eyewitness testimony from highly respected state official, and beyond all that, you have INSULTED said official before your village leader by presuming to be able to ORDER him to obey, thereby flaunting your attempt to usurp my authority TO MY FACE! ANBU!!!"

At once the masked men and women that had accompanied the council in stepped forward, as well as two others who seemed to step from the wall itself, the latter pair still sporting a brace of senbon, ready to act at their commander's order. "Lord!"

"Escort these individuals to the council chambers, all save Homura-san, he is to be taken to Ibiki, let us hope he sees the error of his ways."

The room erupted in shouts even as they were being forced from the room, a pale Elder having a rough hand placed on him before vanishing in a swirl of leaves, the dog mask seen nodding towards the Hokage before pair disappeared.

"Now then…where were we…"

* * *

Naruto was looking at the large man before him in mild fear, he had been raging at nothing in particular now for several minutes, drifting into languages he didn't understand now and again before ending a statement with a rather nasty looking pane mime. "D-Drakus…" he took a steadying breath before looking at the young boy before him, "W-Why did you say I was your son…"

A soft smile graced the once stony features, "Pup, just because you haven't decided to be my son, doesn't mean I won't treat you like one. Think, Sarutobi-san isn't your grandfather, but he treats you as his own. Is it so surprising to think that I would as well? The pair from the ramen stand treats you well too, you know."

He gave something of a half shrug as he settled onto the couch, "I guess…but why?"

His smile widened further as he took the chair he once sat in once more and pulled it closer to Naruto, "Because we see you as you are. Not what you carry. The Ichirakus grew to like you, initially, because of your love of ramen, something that endeared you to them. I can't speak for Sarutobi, but myself, I see something of me in you, kid. I was alone for a very long time, and I don't want to see someone else go through that, especially in a place like this that won't appreciate what you have done, and what the Fourth had done, to protect them all."

Naruto sat in silence for a time, doing his best to sort his thoughts, "So…You weren't just saying it…you want to adopt me?"

A deep, rumbling laugh echoed through the personal library before a surprisingly soft voice reached his ears, one that sounded surprisingly tired, "Listen, pup, you don't know me well yet, so don't feel pressured to make a choice now, but one thing you will learn about me. I never lie. It's one of the reasons I do so well as a mediator, I speak plainly or don't speak at all."

Again he lapsed into silence, but it was an oddly comfortable one, he had told him the truth, and to his knowledge he hadn't lied to him since he had met him, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot."

"D-Did you…Did you know my parents…I mean, you knew about the fox, and you were there that night…so did you know them?"

Drakus let out a heavy sigh as he ran his hand through his hair, his features troubled as he slumped back into the chair, the aged wood groaning in protest. "Ya kid…I knew them," His hand shot up to stop the boy from speaking, said child had already been half way out of the seat, "Don't ask me, I can't tell you, not now, I was told I couldn't, so please, don't make this hard. I know it's not fair, but maybe soon you'll be allowed to know. Understand, your father had a lot of enemies, and if your anything like me, when you find out who he is your going to want to run and shout it from the top of the monument, and that won't end well for you."

The young boy shrank into the cushions of the couch, seeming to tuck into himself as he tried to fight off the tears that were threatening to flow, Drakus had said it himself, it wasn't fair.

Time seemed to crawl at a snail's pace as the two sat in a tense silence, the food steadily growing colder before the study's door opened slowly, the rather tired looking Hokage entering slowly. "You, old friend, need to work on your diplomatic skills."

Drakus smirked, apparently quite happy with himself for his actions. "I heard you screeching in there, old monkey. So those teammates of yours got put in their place. Good, never liked them, they were both to quick to judge, and quicker still to fight. One more reason I always whispered your name at the Kage summits."

The elderly leader let out a huff of annoyance as he reached for his pipe, taking his time to stuff the aged wood with the sweet, cherry flavored, tobacco. "So, you're the one I have to thank for my continued service?"

Drakus' smile returned to that of the small one Naruto was privy to a moment ago, "Blame me all you want Sarutobi-kun, you're the one that did too good a job. Why else would the Fourth have asked you to come out of retirement?"

He leaned back into one of the large, heavily cushioned chair as he blew out a cloud of clue tinted smoke, "Because he had a sick sense of humor, like my own student…" The trio chuckled lightly at the comment; however, only two truly knew how true the statement had been.

"Um…Jii-Jii…" A kind smile was his answer; however, the pair noticed that Naruto wouldn't stop fidgeting with the hem of one of the hat's veils, seemingly lost as to how to approach this. "Are...are those girls, from before, are they okay?"

The smile didn't leave the aged leader's face and he clapped a hand on Naruto's shoulder, "Naruto, all four are going to be just fine. Ino, that young blond, she just had the wind knocked out of her and Sakura was more scared than anything."

He lowered his gaze from the grandfatherly figure and gripped the hat a bit tighter; he looks to be trying to hold back tears at what he had to ask next. "And…the others…I hurt one of them pretty bad…" his next words were barely audible to the pair, "I'm a bad person…like they said…"

Drakus plopped into the seat beside the teary-eyed boy, dropping a heavy arm across his shoulders, "Naruto." He looked up, his face a mask of worry and confusion, "You carefully assessed a situation before moving in with courage and convection. You were one standing against many in order to protect innocents, and now you are showing concern for your enemies. I could never ask for a better boy to be my son."

Sapphire orbs searched dark, wolfen eyes for a few long moments, they held no anger, no disappointment, only a fierce pride for him, a surprising affection hidden deeper still. His gaze drifted from the large man to the old leader, looking for some form of conformation, and was not disappointed. The Hokage had a face splitting grin as he watched the pair, his eyes holding every bit the pride that Drakus' had. Still, something was gnawing at him…

"Drakus…you said this one," He pointed to the fourth symbol.

"Those are runes Naruto, letters from another language."

He mouthed the odd word a few times before being sure he could say it right, "This…rune. You said it only worked when you…wanted to kill…"

That caused the Hokage's face to harden, even he had had experience with that blade, and ne wasn't lying. Drakus ran a hand through his hair, seemingly lost in thought, his gaze resting squarely on the blue gem that acted as the blade's counterbalance. "That is true…and yet it is not…"

Confused looks met his as he thought about how to approach it, "That knife…it's special. As I said, it will take on different properties, depending on how it's used. When it bonds to a new person, it stores a portion of that individual's will into it. For me, it was the ice. I had already been through a lot in my life, and I was cold, disconnected, and harsh toward everyone. Yet unerringly calm, able to heal and move on, even if it was slow. That, for the blade, translated into ice. That…creature I killed, the one bound in the fourth rune, it was nothing be rage, killing intent, trying to destroy everything as quickly as possible, so it could move on and do it again. You, you are yet to be seen, I know the rune is active, but it has yet to be triggered for the first time, until then, it can never be accessed like the others."

He paused for a moment to reach into a hip pouch, after a moment of digging he pulled out what looked like an overly gilded and decorated mug with an odd little flip top on it. The one shining surface was decorated with many old, bearded faces, each one sporting some kind of intricate helmet, many with horns of some kind. The lip and base sported more of the odd letters like the knife did, but all in all the tankard looked to be terribly weathered, Naruto had a feeling that it was more the fact he hadn't used it in a long time, rather than not taking care of it.

"Runes, Naruto, can do any number of things, the knife has some that will keep it sharp, this flagon, has one that will clean it." He demonstrated by pressing his thumb into a small groove at the top of the handle, at once the whole of the dish glowed, a faint blue shimmer passing over the surface and interior, leaving an item that looked fancy enough to be used in even the stateliest of dinners. The once faint shine now seemed so brilliant that it was almost hard to look at, the silver and gold faces looking almost regal with sharp angles and gems set into facets of the helmets and beards in every color. "Other runes can summon or even create effects if forged properly, and each one is triggered in a different way." To demonstrate he reached back into the pouch, pausing to hand the large cup to Naruto who held it gingerly, afraid to damage the item. It took Drakus a moment before he pulled a leather skin almost the size of his forearm from a pouch that was far too small to hold it, seeing Naruto's awed stare he gave a sly smirk before placing the skin on the small coffee table before him, and then reached back into the pouch. The looks on their faces were was enough to kick off a fit of laughter that shook the books themselves, he had reached far enough into the small pouch for his arm to vanish up to the large shoulder plate where he made a show of digging before pulling out a carefully wrapped package, the oiled cloth smelled strange before Drakus unwrapped it to reveal a set of odd, but delicious smelling hand pies. Well, hand pies to HIM.

Drakus took a moment to offer the pastries to the pair before claiming one himself and pausing to inhale the sweet scent of rhubarb. Something he knew the pair had never had before. "As you can see, the runes, among other things, on that pouch are used for storage, while my tankard…" He poured a bit of water from the skin into the flagon then urged Naruto to drink it, almost as soon as the water was gone he had to adjust his grip, the thing had just re-filled itself! Naruto made to take another drink before his nose wrinked in displeasure, that wasn't water... "Easy pup, your not ready for that." He motioned for Naruto to hand it back, something he was more than happy to do, before he took a long draw, slamming the tankard back onto the table. "Now then, did you want to kill that girl?"

Naruto very nearly choked on the pie he had taken a tentative bite of, "W-what!? NO!"

He calmly took another draw of his drink before offering it to Sarutobi, who politely declines, however, as Drakus was happy to note, the pie was already gone. "Then, judging by what you have seen, why did it activate?"

"I don't know, it's like it had a mind of its own!"

He seemed to think for a moment, large, shining fingers holding his chin for a moment. "Yes, and know, as I said, the runes have a will, after a fashion. In my time here, I've learned that my runecraft seems to…react, uniquely with chakra, often times activating when they don't necessarily need to. The fourth rune, the Rune of Malice, as I've taken to calling it, activated because you were pushing yourself so hard that you unintentionally drew on your chakra. Not unheard of in situations of high stress and tension like that. However, when activated unnaturally like that its effects are, largely, diminished. Be thankful that it was just a knife, if you had been using something larger, like a proper blade, then it would have carried through the kunai as well as the clone."

"Clone?"

Sarutobi had just put the waterskin back onto the table, pausing to wipe at his mouth. A part of him enjoying the almost rustic way they were enjoying their snack, "Yes Naruto, you were fighting a mud clone that Tsume-chan had created as a stand in, she was trying to make sure you would not get hurt and, while she could have stopped it, both Drakus and herself had wanted to see how the fight would have played out."

Naruto was staring blankly at the pie in his hands, he suddenly wasn't very hungry. "It…It was a test? Why?"

Drakus pressed another rune as he emptied the tankard, the act seeming to keep the cup from refilling. "I wanted to see how far you were willing to go to protect someone, to stay true to your dream. You didn't disappoint. I think you impressed young Tsume as well. I'm sure she's telling her son about your run in with her niece even now."

"So, if I didn't do well, you wouldn't want me?"

Drakus let out an annoyed snort before ruffling the boy's dirty hair, "Not in the slightest, I would have stepped in to help, and then made sure to teach you how to use that knife. Now then, how's that arm? I'm sure that rune did a number on you."

The pair looked at him in confusion, he just blinked in response. "What, you didn't wonder why your arm was ripped from the socket? I can see its back in place already, probably thanks to the fox, but I bet it's still tender."

"Drakus-san…why would the rune do that?"

The wolf grin grew once more as he patted Naruto on the back, "Isn't it obvious? He wasn't expecting it, were you?" Naruto gave a half shrug in response, before taking another bite of the pie, "I told you what the rune did, its increases the force of a blow, and if your arm isn't expecting it then it will whirl it right off, if you're not careful."

Naruto sputtered again as he looked at the gem in fear, "TWIST IT OFF!!!"

He shrugged, "Well that or you lose your grip, one of the two. One reason I don't use it if I can help it."

The Hokage looked at the blade in mild awe, wondering what else that weapon could accomplish, he had watched the whole endeavor through his crystal ball and had seen Naruto's arm rotate like that, cleanly out of the socket, but he didn't attribute it to the knife. He took a steadying breath before settling back into the chair, unaware that he had been leaning forward for most of the explanation. "Drakus, if we may return to more…pressing matters." At once the large man seemed to come to attention, his posture straightening and his features turning hard. He was no fool; he knew his actions would have consequences. "The council is currently in debate on the merits of your adoption application, apparently trying to find a hole in your petition. However, if I know you, old friend, you've covered yourself quite well."

"Wait…their talking about this NOW!"

"I hardly expect them to be able to talk about anything else." The elderly man tapped his pipe clean into a nearby ashtray.

"Then why aren't we there now!" He was quick to shoot to his feet, taking a moment to put the tankard, the now empty cloth as well as the waterskin back into the seemingly bottomless pouch.

"Because, Drakus-san, any final ruling will have to come from me, seeing as one of the council elders is now…indisposed. However, just to be certain, I sent a messenger bird to the Fire Lord, I'm expecting a response back from her within the hour."

Drakus looked down at the elderly man for a full minute before he began to chuckle, the act growing into another book-shaking laugh. The large fur covered man couldn't help it, he was glad he had come back to the hidden leaf village after all these years.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

A/N – In regards to Drakus, I know that right now he hasn't been acting much like a Space Marine. Let's face it, if he was he would be rather one dimensional in this setting, if he were to be a standard Marine, even a Space Wolf, then he would be harsh, unapproachable, and generally someone you would avoid like the plague. In 40k's universe, he would be free to act as he was trained, but time spent in a world devoid of the Emperor he, as anyone, would have to adapt, not to mention this was not his fist stop, as it were, when he left that universe. Such information about him is something that will be shown later on via flashbacks and explanations to others that will join our duo.

I bring this up now because rather early on you will see some very un-Marine like behavior, but really, if I had spent as much time alone as he had, and finally got a son, then ya, I would be acting the same way. ^_^

This chapter will be a bit longer (Really, it will go as long as I think it needs to…) as it is the one before the duo leave, after this chapter there will probably be a time skip to their return to the village, perhaps with a few more additions to their odd little troop, including some character cameos from other parts of the Journeys series. Not that that means too much at the moment…as I have yet to work up the nerve to type them up and post them…

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 6

* * *

"…for these examples, your petition to adopt one Uzumaki Naruto has been denied."

Fugaku Uchiha was feeling rather proud of himself right now. The council had been meeting in secret deliberating for three days already, and after this lengthy recess they had finalized the list he had just finished detailing to those that stood in the center of the chamber, all the reasons as to why the ambassador wouldn't be able to adopt a now stricken looking Naruto as the odd trio stood before the circled stands of seats that made up the council chambers, it had taken him an hour and a half to do so, and was iron clad. The whole of the village representation was currently present, with the exception of one glaringly empty seat that once held one of the village elders. The head of the security force's smug smile was met with a glare of disdain from the ambassador, to many it seemed as though the temperature of the room had steadily been droping.

The two kept in a deadlock for several long moments before a feral grin formed on Drakus' features, his eyes seeming to glow in the dim light even as his fangs shone brightly. "Your objections are noted, and subsequently ignored. By order of the Fire Lord, Naruto has the option to come with me if he so wishes, as a citizen, not of Konohagakure, but of the Land of Fire. This order is supported by majority vote by the entirety of the Elemental Nations, at a vote of four to one."

The whole of the hall erupted in cacophonous decries as the whole of the civilian cast, as well as several of the clans, stood to make their points heard. Of the some fifty men and women there were only a scant ten that were not on their feet. While the numbers were few, there were not many that carried so much clout in the village. Tsume Inuzuka sat with a smug smile on her face; those near her could hear the dry laugh coming from the great dog at her side. A scared man at to her right, bearing a spiked ponytail, seemed to be sharing her sentiment, fighting the urge to laugh openly despite his normally lazy nature. Many of the clan heads, it seems, were happy to see the Uchiha knocked down a peg.

The whole of the assembly was forced to silence as the Hokage held up a letter bearing the same seal that Drakus wore proudly on his right breast, The Crest of Five Nations. Drakus smiled and gave a small bow to the village leader before half turning to the assembly, keeping most of his attention on the boy. "The last is now up to Naruto. Naruto, in my time here you have been almost constantly at my side, seeing those of the village that we both hold dear, but know I will have to leave soon. Now it's all up to you, would you like to leave this place with me, as my son? If you do, then don't worry, we will be back to visit quite often, after all, I still have to attend Anko-chan's graduation. That and Tsume would kill me if I didn't visit a few times a year these days." He ended the small speech with a smile to the young boy that was currently trying to hide a bit behind the Hokage's robes, the elderly leader sparing the boy a soft smile as he noted Tsume's blush, he was going to have fun with this bit of blackmail.

Naruto gave the larger man a weak smile before stepping closer to the man, "Y-you promise that we can come back, I'll miss Jii-Jii."

The giant gave the young boy a soft smile, "Naruto, I will never lie to you."

The weak smile grew slowing into one of gentle warmth, one that caused several of the members of the council to look at the boy strangely; he looked almost…human. "Then…Then I've decided! You were the one that gave something to protect myself, you stood up for me and you helped me even when no one else would except the Hokage…" The soft smile became a wide grin as he looked to the man who he would now be calling father, "I'll be happy to go with you wherever you want dad!"

One moment Naruto was looking up at the large man, now he found himself weightless and looking down in shock at the wildly grinning face of the giant below him, faster than he could even process his dad had just grabbed him and thrown him into the air! With a yell of fear he found himself plummeting to the earth once more only to feel the large hands under his arms moving with the momentum, swinging him around to toss him into the air once more. It took three more throws before Naruto realized he wasn't in any kind of danger and began to laugh, his mind flashing back to images of families in the parks, other fathers and mothers doing this for their children. Two more throws and Drakus let the speed drop to nothing, swinging the young boy up onto one massive shoulder before the grinning pair turned back to a smiling Hokage and a dumbstruck council, most of the men and women reminded of their own families in that moment.

"If that will be all Lord Hokage, I think it's time for the pup and I to get some ramen, we'll be by your office later on to pick up anything the boy may need." Sarutobi couldn't help but notice the obvious look, he knew very well what needed to be picked up, the elderly leader would have to rush this meeting in order to gather everything and have it ready.

"Your dismissed Ambassador, I'll have everything ready by supper time." As the newly anointed father and son left he turned back to the recovering council. "Now that civilian matters are out of the way, let us finalize this trade agreement so we can let the Ambassador be on his way."

* * *

Drakus was beside himself with joy, he thought the only person that may have been happier was Naruto, who wouldn't stop jabbering about all the places he wanted to go see, all the things he wanted to go do, and additional questions for the giant that he now road upon.

"Dad! Where are we going to first?"

"Once we have the finalized trade proposal we have to send it off to each of the other nations to get their okay on Kanoha's changes, after that we will be heading for Nami. Then we'll we coming back to Kanoha on the way to Suna. I've received word that they are having issues getting missions from the Wind Lord and they asked me to talk to him for them."

"What are Wave and Sand like?"

"In order? Wet and hot...I've never liked the heat, but it will be a good first step on your training. After we are done in Suna I've finally opted to use my traveling rights, we'll be heading to Snow for a year, to get you in shape for the real work."

"Real work?"

He quirked a brow at his son, "You do remember what I said didn't you? I would be taking three years to turn you into a soldier, then the next six to turn you into a ninja, the Hokage will have everything you need in that regard, that's one of the reasons we'll be seeing him later on today. Enough of this though, why don't we swing by the academy and pick up Anko-chan and Iruka-kun for lunch?"

Naruto's scream of 'Ya! Ramen!' could be heard at all four of the village's gates.

* * *

Today sucked…

No, scratch that, the whole week had sucked.

Here she was, one of, if not THE most promising kunoichi of her generation, trained in the arts of stealth and killing, a woman on the fast track to the head of the Torture and Interrogation department under one of the few people she respected, Ibiki Morino and one of the last to be trained by the old war time doctrine. However, all the accomplishments in her time at the academy, even the rumor that she was being scouted by the legendary Snake Sannin Orochimaru couldn't bring her out of her funk.

The cause of her anger was obvious, at least to her. Naruto Uzumaki.

It wasn't that she didn't like the boy, far from it. However, it was the fact that he was taking all the time and attention of a certain man. A man, she felt, who would be better served having his attentions on someone else.

As much as she would have loved to have said otherwise she couldn't, this man was her hero. She still remembered that night. It was one year before she would be joining the academy, she and her parents has just been settling in for a nice, heavy stew. The chill of winter had set in early this year, however it was times like that she loved. It seemed to happen at least once in the two weeks preceding her birthday each year, a gentle breeze from the west that would sometimes carry with it the scent of water. They had just sat down the when the alarms had sounded. Then the trio had felt it. It swam through your senses, your very soul, a greasy sickness that seemed to settle in your belly, a feeling of dread that had stayed with her even now.

A part of her world ended that day. Like so many, her parents had rushed off to fight the Kyuubi, doing everything in their power to hold the demon back. Most of what had followed had been a blur as she and the other civilians were rushed to the underground shelters. However, one moment had been seared into her memory; some part of her knew it would be there with her for the rest of her days.

She, an elderly man and another child were being pushed by a woman in a chunin vest to hurry along, the woman doing her best to get as many as she could into the tunnel when the rock face was suddenly illuminated in a hellish red, the four looked to the source of the glow and froze, as deer in a bright light. There, staring back at them was a massive, crimson eye. Its slit pupil seemed to dilate slightly, as if studying them, before it pulled back only to roar. The force of the thing alone brought the huddling masses to their knees as they stared up at what looked to be their deaths. Its jaws widened, teeth the size of three story buildings, but it was what had happened next that would confuse her for many a long night. It had started snapping its jaws wildly, every great crash sending out shockwaves that shook the very stone from the cliffs, but made no move for the cowering masses

The great fox had suddenly wheeled, bringing its snarling jaws to bear against a giant toad that had appeared as if from nowhere, even in the darkness, even at this distance, they could make out the shining yellow hair and white, flame skirted long-jacket he wore, their Forth was standing atop the amphibian as part of an odd duo, seemingly intent on holding back the fox all on his own and, as grand as the scene was, it was quickly obscured by four great furred appendages.

Tails.

Shouts of alarm, screams of horror. It had all dissolved into so much chaos. Four great, swaying tails were raised high, one of them went high, cutting a massive gouge in the rock as easily as a child would pass its hand through a new-formed snowdrift, causing the group to hug the rock face in a desperate attempt to avoid the rockslide that came soon after. She remembered looking back as the path shook, her eyes widening in terror as she saw the old man next to her simply vanish under a boulder before the massive stone took the path with it on the way down. She could vaguely make out screams of the terrified and the dying over the roar of the fox, but only because it was so close to her.

She was frozen, seemingly mesmerized by the grace in the tails. Then she saw the great beast lower itself into a crouch, the tails had to follow. She felt an icy hand grip her heart as two of them descended, she knew it was over. She knew she would never see her parents again.

In a way, she was right.

Her eyes were screwed closed in fear, her arms raised high above her in a futile attempt to stop the blow, a blow that never came. She had felt the earth buckle under her feet, felt the ground shift, she knew she wasn't dead because of that fact alone. Slowly she opened her eyes and hand to blink, hard.

There before her was a giant, his massive form fill the whole of the carved walkway, a shining suit of armor with a highly stylized helmet was standing over her. In the knight's hands were weapons the likes of which she had never seen before. In his right was a pole arm of some kind, the metal haft shining brilliantly in the dim light, the whole of the thing longer than even he was tall and was currently brought up before him in one, massive hand, the extra length braced under one arm to give him more leverage. A great silver blade was thrust into one of the tails; from its golden gild to the odd, parchment like scroll that trailed from it shot arcs of brilliant energy that danced along and into the tail, every spark seeming to burn a hole deeper into the crimson fur.

The other hand was sporting a weapon no less impressive. A huge axe was continuing to bat one tail back even as it came crashing down again and again as the hand wielding the halberd forced it's tale into the rock when he leaned in doing his best to pin it down and, despite how impossible it seemed, he was succeeding. Each great crash of the axe was deafening, the red fur like steel before the odd, crystalline looking axe. Every impact flashed in the night, sending a shower of hot, oddly blue sparks raining over the pair. He gave a half turn toward her, for the first time seeing what looked to be a forged wolf skull at the apex of the axe, finally the great stylized helmet turned to her, making her gape further as deep, glowing blue eyes stared at her from a wolf-shaped helmet.

"There is little time to spare. Child, are you unharmed?"

The voice held an odd echo to it, as though it were coming from deep within an empty, iron room. The pitch was deep, like a great bear, but held a level of concern to it, the strangest, almost haunting thing about it was the utter lack of fear in this situation. She felt herself nodding dumbly as she looked at shining steel, his left hand still knocking the tail aside almost absently. Strangely, she could see a dull, blue glow surrounding the whole of his body, blurring it slightly, like a heat shimmer, even at this range. It seemed any time the tail grew closer the aura would flare, lunging at the flailing appendage and seeming to direct the axe time and again.

He gave a slight nod as he looked down the path, seeing more and more people gathering at the edge of the path, watching in awe as he seemed to fight the thing without even watching it. As the tail began to rise once more he brought the axe to his hip, attaching it in some unseen way as he leveled a hand at the gaping hole in the rock path, the great gauntlet shaking as a gale wind formed. Seemingly at his will more and more rock was brought up from the slag before the cliff to fill in the hole before the temperature of the wind dipped horribly, freezing the air itself to hold the stone and earth in place.

Even as his work ended the group cried out to him, his aura flared and a great sheet of ice formed as a shield before, to even more shocked cries, the tail glanced off, not so much as a chip of ice coming from the great wall.

"Now, all of you move, the shelters are close."

Anko, however, didn't move, seemingly lost in a trance as the man opened a hole in the ice. The glowing eyes passed over the scene before him with a strange detachment before they settled on a tail that was dancing along the ground, blurs of ninja doing their best to keep it at bay so it could not rise to join the others the small blurs doing their best to keep their loved ones safe. She felt her mouth moving but no sounds would come as a deep, terrifying growl filled the air, she wasn't sure if it was the fox, who's extra tails were batting aside water balls fired from the great toad, or the massive warrior before her.

The helmet flicked to her once more as the free hand came up, causing the wind to rise once more, forming ice around the pinned tail as he pulled the great halberd from the appendage. "Child," Her ears perked up even more, struggling to hear him over the sounds of battle, the earth shaking as the fox tried to pull free of the multitude of ninja wires, ice, mud and what looked like a swamp that were all holding him tight. "Get into the shelter now, and may Russ watch over you…"

He took the halberd into both hands, lifting the butt of the haft above his shoulder, supported by his right hand as the left slid closer to the blade, the great edge held lower to the ground as his stance widened. Then he was simply gone, a silver streak moving along the top of the pined tail, moving at shocking speeds for once so large.

She had just turned to enter the iron girded room when the night behind her became day as a storm of energy filled the sky, she could heard one last phrase echoing over the winds as the door slammed shut behind her, an odd tongue that, while she didn't know what it meant, filled her with hope, driving that sick feeling from her belly.

_"Et Imperator Invocato Diabolus Daemonica Exorcism! Holocaust!"_

_

* * *

_

She was currently sitting in the classroom alone, tapping a pencil on the desk as she reveled in the memory. Seeing him standing like that before the demon, seemingly only there for her, was something she was never going to forget. He blamed himself, she knew that much, for not being able to save her parents that night, and while devastated by their deaths, she didn't blame him, he had been doing the impossible, keeping the fox at bay to save as many as he could. She didn't blame her parents; they were fighting to protect her. She didn't blame Naruto, he was just a baby, she had seen the fox, she knew there was no way a cute kid like him, that went well out of his way to make her happy the few times she had met him in the park, could be that demon. No, she blamed the fox.

She let out an annoyed sigh as she flopped back in the chair, the seat lifting back onto two legs as she swung her feet up onto the wooden surface, the writing implement now twirling over her fingers in practiced ease. She would be turning fourteen in a few short months and, judging by the looks the boys gave her in class, she was attractive, already developing nicely in her opinion. She was no fool, she knew that, as a kunoichi, she would need to be able to seduce and enthrall as part of her missions, so from a career standpoint she was happy with her development. However, that didn't mean she wanted the little pervs to ogle her in class all the time.

To that end she typically downplayed her looks, not that she really cared about primping beyond keeping herself presentable, but she knew that to obsess over her looks, like some of the girls, was to cut her training, making he a worse ninja, making her dead.

It was a simple formula, less hair care with more kunai throwing equaled more time later in life to worry about looks. You live now to have fun later, simple. So why the hell was it that some of the other girls didn't get that.

The young woman moved from twirling the pencil to balancing it on a fingertip, now and again flexing a finger to send the pencil skyward before catching it again by the tip. She had been waiting for half an hour now, Naruto had said yesterday that the two of them were going to be by today to treat her, that he would have some exciting news. Despite her funk she smiled a bit, it was rare for the large man to come to town like this, and even then he would usually make sure he wasn't scene, just slipping in to check on a few people before ghosting away again, one of the reasons she liked the man so much was his seemingly impossible abilities like that, how a man that towered over others at two and a half meters could sneak anywhere was an accomplishment, add in the armor and it was simply astounding.

As she was about to start a new trick with the pencil she heard the commotion coming from outside the classroom and let a face splitting grin take her over. She could hear the voices gasping and gossiping about a furry, black giant with a wolf's head. Quickly righting the chair and smoothing her baggy long sleeve shirt she turned to the door, fidgeting slight at the thought of seeing them again, granted, it had only been two days, but he was always so much fun to hang around she couldn't help herself. She gave herself a last glance to make sure she was presentable. Deep purple shirt, long sleeved and baggy enough to hide a few kunai up on her forearm, check. Black baggy pants littered with pockets taped at the ankles, check. Sandals with footpads, ensuring that even if she were stomping around it would be quiet, check. Weapon pouches taped to her thighs, upper arms with flanking scroll caddies, check. Short, barely longer than her earlobes hair, swept back with a headband, worn the way she was intending to wear her hitae-ite, check. She was all set.

A few moments later the door was thrown aside to reveal the beaming face of the boy she was currently so envious of, she let out a huff of annoyance as the little blond streak barreled at her. She gripped the wooden lip under the tabletop in preparation of the impact, the first time she had seen him come in like this she hadn't been ready, she swore she still had the knot on the back of her head from their impact on the stairs.

"ANKO-CHAN!" 'Thud'

She took a moment to ruffle the boy's hair, even after all this time she marveled at how soft his hair was. "Hi Nartuo, what kept you? I thought I was going to have to eat my sandals. Where's Drakus-san?"

He giggled at the image of her gnawing on her shoe before taking both hands in his, pulling her to her feet before he started dragging her to the door. "He went to get Iruka-kun; things went really good with the council, so he's taking us out to eat!"

She let herself be led along with a smile, there were still plenty of places that wouldn't let them eat there because of the stigma Naruto carried with him, so that meant one of three things, her favorite; Drakus' cooking, the man was a miracle worker with meat and pastries. Dango, a close second for her, or Ramen, something she tolerated, but judging by the blonds' mood, it was going to be the latter. "Let me guess…Ichiraku's?"

He shot her a dazzling smile from over his shoulder, "Yep! Drakus-san said he wanted them to know the good news to, he said he's get you something from somewhere else though; I still think you're crazy though, ramen is the food of the gods!" Naruto was doing his best to keep his adoption from Anko, Drakus said it was going to be a great surprise for all of them, and just the thought of their surprised looks was enough to keep him in line.

She let out a decidedly unladylike snort at the declaration, "The food of the gods? Please kid, Drakus' pie is the best."

That gave Naruto pause, "Pie?"

"Ya, pie."

His brow furrowed in confusion as he looked back at the purple haired woman, "What's pie?"

Anko froze in mid stride, the act yanking Naruto off his feet at the suddenness, he looked up at her in confusion as her features ran the gambit from shocked, to sad to happy, "Oh, this is perfect, were going to get him to make us some pie." With a positively evil grin she began to wring her hands together, maybe this week wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

It ended up taking the odd group another hour to gather everyone up, the new father and son had gone off to get Ino and Sakura while Iruka went to the tower to request the check on the Hokage, lastly, Anko went to the Inuzuka compound to get a woman named Tsume. She didn't know her personally, but her reputation as a tracker was legendary. Over the last few days Ino and Sakura had been found trailing the odd duo, finding excuses to be around the blond and his large protector, seemingly to be found every time they went to a training ground or the ramen stand. Drakus was finding it hard not to laugh at the trio, it was clear to him that the little girls were crushing on the blond hard, but he was so inexperienced with others that he remained blissfully ignorant of the fact.

Ino had been easy enough to fetch, her father more than happy to have her associating with the ambassador's family, something he made sure not to let her know, wishing to keep the surprise for the duo, currently the young girl was having the time of her life riding on Drakus' left shoulder while Naruto had the right, her laughter echoing throughout the street as they moved to their next stop. Sakura, however, was different. After Drakus knocked on the door he was mildly surprised to see a familiar shock of pink hair, however, the woman had blue eyes, not the kind green that the little girl possessed. What was at first a kind smile became a mask of fury at seeing the behemoth from the council meeting standing before her, the little monster on his shoulder, young boy grinning happily even as Drakus' smile faded.

"YOU!" The trio shrank back slightly at the shrill tone the woman possessed, she was a banshee!

"Me?"

"You're the one taking my husband's murderer in! How dare you call yourself a peacekeeper! You should kill it now before it's too late!"

Naruto's smile faded almost instantly as he tried to slide a bit, looking to hide behind his father's head, it seemed, Ino was just looking at the scene in confusion as she felt an odd sensation creep into her stomach, one of slight hate coming off of Drakus, however, the feeling was ten times as strong from Sakura's mother. Drakus could feel his son began to tremble on his perch and scowled at the woman before him, the pinkette shrinking slightly at the giant glowering at her. However, before he could bark back a response there was a happy shout from inside the house, "Naruto-kun! Drakus-san! Ino-chan! What're you all doing here?"

Drakus schooled his features a bit even as Naruto gave her a weak smile, his eyes flicking back to her mother time and again, trying to decide if he should answer."H-Hey Sakura-chan…um…we had a surprise for you…but it's kinda out now…we were going to go out for some ramen and wanted you and Ino-chan to come…"

"My daughter will NEVER go ANYWHERE with you, you monster! Come on Sakura, it's time for bed!"

"But-"

"Don't you talk back to me little miss! I said bed, MOVE!"

The young girl's shoulders fell a bit before giving an apologetic smile to Ino and Naruto, lastly she gave a small bow to the large man, something barely seen as the door slammed in their faces.

Drakus let out a tired sounding sigh as he patted his son's leg, "Well, that could have gone better…"

"Drakus-san…what did she mean by 'taking in her husband's murder'? You only have Naruto-kun with you…"

He glanced up at the platinum blond then sent the same gaze to Naruto. The boy was doing his best to smile at his fellow blond, "It's nothing Ino-chan, she just has trouble seeing things as they really are. One reason she's not a ninja." He gave her his standard smirk before they walked around the back of the house. "Ino-chan, which room is Sakura's?"

The young girl looked at him in confusion for a moment before pointing at a second story window. Drakus looked to his son with a smile and a nod, getting an answering grin before Naruto dug in his pocket for some rocks he kept with him, in case he needed some small projectile. He tossed one a few times, feeling the weight before winging it at the window, earning a soft tap from the glass.

After a few throws the window opened to reveal the young girl again, she looked at the trio with a smile and a wave before a flicker of sadness passed through her eyes, "Guys, what are you doing?"

"Your coming with us kid."

"But my mom said-"

"The Hokage will be there, there's nothing to worry about." He looked up at Naruto who nodded, taking a moment to slide fully over so that he was straddling his father's neck, opening up his right shoulder once more. "Jump kid, I've got you."

Her eyes widened in fear for a moment before glancing back into the room, after a bit she looked back down at them and nodded, the fear replaced with determination before she held up a hand, motioning for them to wait. She vanished for a moment only to reappear with a pair of flip-flops in hand, a wide grin on her face as she looked down at the giant who was now reaching up for her. She had to admit, at first his large size had scared her, but at times it had its uses, like making this drop a short one.

As soon as he had her comfortable situated, the girl taking a moment to adjust her perch so she wasn't sitting on the wolf head, the trio moved from the building at slow trot, trying to get some distance from the house before they were discovered. Luck seemed to be on their side as they made their way back down the street toward the little restaurant.

* * *

As the four arrived they could see that something of a party was already well underway, Drakus was the only one that didn't seem surprised at the large number of people there at the moment as Naruto spotted a large tail that showed Tsume and her dog were there, apparently she was laughing quite loudly about something to. The hem of white robes was the next thing to be seen, so Sarutobi had managed to make it. Anko and Iruka were easy enough to spot as they were the most normal looking there, next to them a bit further down the bar were a few other kids Naruto's age, one with black hair and one with brown, they were trying to keep to themselves, it seems. As the four ducked (quite literally in this instance) into the stand they were met with a chorus of shouts, all in greeting for Naruto and the gang.

Said boy noticed that there were several more adults there looking happy for him as well, he noticed one was Ino's father, sitting next to her mother as the two held up glasses. The trio at his right looked to be largely laid back, save for the apparent wife who was just as happy looking as the others, the father and the boy, while smiling and laughing slightly were highly subdued. Those then sitting next to them were all a bit on the large side, the older man was wearing rather nice looking samurai armor that had the symbol for 'food' on its chest, his wife and son already on their third bowls of ramen.

As the boy's eyes were scanning the group he came to the last two that sat with at a small table away from the bar due to the lack of room, these two, however, seemed to set the boy's soft, true smile off as he waved happily to the young boy and girl. The boy was wearing rather thread worn green clothing, both shirt and pants done to look much like Anko's, though his sleeves were not as baggy, his eyes were wide in innocence, capped by an unruly pair of eyebrows and wild black hair. At his side was a young girl with brown hair done up in a bun in the back, again, she wore similar clothing to the boy, hers a pale blue. The duo waved happily back at him before Drakus sat Ino down by her parents before moving over to the small table, quickly dropping Sakura into one of the empty seats before he held Naruto before him.

"Okay pup, I want you to make nice now, I have to duck out for a minute to get something from the hotel." He put Naruto in the chair before he turned back to the group, he smirked at the looks Ino kept sending the table, seemingly annoyed that she had been waylaid by her parents and couldn't yet sneak away. He slapped a few times, the dull metallic thud enough to draw the attention of the others, "Everyone, feel free to order what you want, kids, and no sake. I'm looking at you Anko-chan, you're not a graduate yet…I have to step out for a moment," He paused for effect, grinning like a madman, "Keep an eye on my son, and make sure he doesn't get into trouble!" And with that Drakus had vanished, his laughter echoing through the street as he left a stunned ramen stand in his wake.

His keen hearing picked up the shouts of surprise and the boy's wailing as he was apparently bombarded with questions, serving to fuel the giant's laughter as he dashed through the street. Some things were so fun they should be illegal. Putting your son in the center of attention then heading for the hills definitely counted.

* * *

A/N2 – Ok, so I'll have another chapter to cover the party and the last minute bits. It will probably be rather short and to the point, unless I want to have some fun with Tsume…


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

A/N – Sorry about the wait, I have no real excuse for it, once more. Just been playing a few older games, C&C and the like. I thought it better to take that light break rather than risk getting burnout on this tale. I hate when I do that, and I'm liking this story too much to risk that.

Not a whole lot to say this time around, there be a party going on (Though this will largely be the aftermath, a bit of the funny, then the next chapter will be the return of our blond hero to Konoha to begin the cannon arcs (After a bit, as he will be coming back in time for when he should of graduated the first time)

The poll will still be up for a bit, as it will take time to get Tenten ingrained further into the story. After much hemming and hawing I opted to split the difference with Tenten's family, I was torn about making her the daughter of weapon show owners, as most do for their fics, or making her an orphan. So she's going to be adopted by merchants that may, at a later date, open a shop. This helps to establish a familiarity with the pair early on that should help out later on.

I've been compiling a list of jutsu for Naruto and am currently working on thinning it out a bit, as it tend to just jot down anything that comes into my head, even from other series, books, games ETC. One thing I will be giving him is a unique summoning contract (At least I've never seen a story with one like it) that I drew from the name of a female assassin character from another story I wrote, should be fun. As you may guess, it's not going to be a wolf contract, again, too obvious; you have to globetrotter these things up every now and again, ya?

Speaking of the unexpected, this opening bit cracked me up while writing it. I know it wasn't really that funny, but sometimes you just get the giggles…

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 7

* * *

'Why was it so damned cold?'

That was the first thing that ran through Tsume Inuzuka's mind as she slowly came back to the waking world. Slowly, with blurry eyes, she made to survey her surroundings. Fist thing that swam into her clearer thoughts was that the room was strangely dim, after another moment of thought she realized that there was something covering her eyes. Annoyed hands came up to feel her head, her features wincing slightly at the disaster that was her hair, it seems it had somehow matted flat on one side, a very vertical flat. Next came the realization that she had some kind of cloth on her head, which was easily handled as she eyed the offending textile.

Her eyes widened.

It was a pair of panties.

And she was pretty sure they weren't hers.

Tossing the delicate garment away as though she was burned her head whipped from side to side, this was her room, that much was evident thanks to the large number of furs that decorated the walls and floors, her scent strong in the room and stronger still on the bed. However, it wasn't just her own.

She was a tracker-nin first and foremost, even as she turned her full attention to the bed she was making notes, her furniture was intact, so there was no fight, meaning that someone hadn't forced her once they had gotten here. While it wasn't a likely scenario, being the clan head that she was, it was still in the realm of possibilities. She noted that the large chair she would so often curl up in was covered in clothing, some of it her own, at the edges of her sight she saw she was totally bare.

That explained the cold.

Her nose flared as she tested the air, somehow she knew that scent, and she just couldn't place it. She knew it was one that she had been around often enough, but where…

Steeling her nerves her full attention came to the odd shape currently rising and falling in a gentle rhythm under her prized Kodiak pelt, whoever it was, she must have liked him to pull that one out. Slowly her hand extended, her fingers hardening slightly in case she would need to strike, a absent thought noting that, somehow, her well honed 'claws' had been…painted, and in no one uniform color.

Calloused fingers gently peeled up a section of the pelt before slowly drawing it back, first came what looked to be brown hair, rather short looking. For a moment her thoughts turned to the great beast she had known for so long and smiled, if it was him, she was going to be PISSED that she couldn't remember anything. With an edge of excitement she decided to throw caution to the wind and ripped the pelt off in one sudden motion. Her vision was obscured for a moment by the white fur as she held her breath, and was promptly brought to a gaping silence.

There, lying peacefully in a loosely curled ball was a woman. Not just any woman, it was her daughter Hana's jonin sensei, Tsuki Hano. Again her tracking instincts took hold, noting anything she could about the woman, she was younger than herself, not greatly, but it showed. Her body was simply more taunt, not that hers' was a something to dismiss, but it was easy to see a few less wrinkles here and there. Her bust held a bit less sag, though it was probably more the fact that they were smaller than her own sitting at a mid B cup, a set of rich brow nipples standing out against pale, milk colored skin.

Tsume's face was growing warmer and warmer as she surveyed the woman's body; she had a feeling about what it was that drew her to the younger woman. While she would never admit it, she was a sucker for a nice ass, and this one was one of the best she had ever laid eyes on. Her mind flashed back to her ex-husband for a moment before she noticed her hands twitching, it seems they wanted to reach out of their own accord.

Thinking for a moment about how this all happened she was at a loss, her mind a total blank. Her eyes drifted along her form once more, this time to take in any small details that may let her know what had happened, she could smell sake, as well as some other kind of a alcohol that she couldn't place, all she knew was it was sweet smelling. She noticed the myriad of scars that adorned the woman's body, most from what looked to be thorns or other brush, save for a rather nasty looking star like scar on her calf, probably where a kunai had been sloppily removed.

However, what really drew her attention was the bite mark on the woman's neck.

With a groan she fell back onto the bed, pulling the wayward pelt with her, 'Fuck it, I'll deal with this shit later…'

The only thing she could really say was this; it had been a hell of a party.

* * *

Drakus was humming a wordless tune as he moved among the wreckage that was the Inuzuka compound. If there had been blood, he would have sworn it was a battlefield, bottles, dishes, broken furniture, they had it all. He saw a trio of older men sitting at a table, heads down and arms still wrapped securely around one another's shoulders from some unknown bonding as part of a song they had been singing. He bit back a chuckle at that; even here war buddies were war buddies.

His great head swung to the living room, away from the bottle-strewn kitchen, to land on the large circular sofa that dominated the center of the of the living room, on each sectional, stretched out comfortably, were the apparent trio's wives. Pausing long enough to drape a blanket over each of them he turned his attention to a large chair, more of a love seat really and let a small smile take over his lips.

There, securely wrapped up in a number of rabbit pelts, was his son, Naruto. It was still taking him time to get used to the idea, but if the boy's happiness from last night was any indication, he wasn't going to have any trouble. At least, not with raising him, women were apparently going to be a different story.

There, cuddled up as close as they could with their little space heater, were the girls from the ramen stand. He could easily make out Sakura, that one was easy, pink hair tended to stand out. Next, her hair intertwined with sun kissed locks, was the pale blond Ino, the young girl snoring softly in the growing light. However, while Sakura was just holding onto his left arm, Ino seemed to be more possessive, wrapping the whole of the boy's middle in her grip from the right. However, it was the last girl that seemed to just scream 'cute' to the hardened veteran, the little brunet was currently curled up on his lap like a kitten, her head the only thing visible from the furs as she continued to nuzzle his neck in her sleep.

He took the opportunity to pull a camera from his hip pouch; some things were just too perfect to pass up.

He noted that the girls had had their fun with her last night as well, pulling her shoulder length hair from its bun and putting it in braided pigtails. This girl, Tenten, had been in the orphanage with Naruto up until his son had been kicked from the state home two weeks before he found him. He smiled a bit as he went about his work, noting that Sarutobi had apparently not fallen victim to last night's games like the rest of them. He pulled Iruka's fur a bit higher on him, the boy mouthing something soundlessly in his sleep, as his mind turned back to the conversation he had had with Naruto's friends.

Apparently Lee and Tenten were both being looked at by families, something that made the gathered group grin and cheer for them. Lee's potential family were ninja, just as he wanted to be, apparently a husband a wife that were close combat specialists, taijutsu masters of the highest caliber according to the Hokage. Tenten's family were merchants that specialized in imports from the other hidden villages, everything from weapons to food. They didn't run a store themselves however; they simply were the brokers for other locations.

Giving one last look at the group he smiled and was about to head to the tower in hopes of gathering the last of the documents he needed when he froze, where was Anko?

And where had Naruto's presents gone…

* * *

'Ow. What the hell was that freak thinking!!!!!'

Currently one Anko Mitarashi was laying face down in the central training yard of the Inuzuka compound. And she was…less than happy. Currently the purple haired kunoichi was wearing something utterly alien to her, never in all her years would she have considered wearing something that, while very little cloth, covered her almost totally. From her shoulders, the cloth hanging too loosely for her tastes, to the midpoint of her shins was a deceptively simple grey short sleeved tunic; the only real unique thing about the whole of the garment was the wolf head insignia on its left breast. The reason she had to consider it 'deceptively simple' was because in all the training she had done while wearing it it seemed to never take any damage. Not one snag, not one tear. She tested it at one point, running the edge of one of her better kunai along the hem, she was startled to see that the blade had lost some of its edge.

While the thing was far from flattering, however, she couldn't deny the function of it. Despite the early hour that she was starting at she only felt the cold on her ankles and arms, the early chill felt much worse because of the steel that now weighed her down.

'Fuck me…'

* * *

Flashback no Justu!

* * *

Drakus grinned slightly at the snippets of conversation that he was hearing, picking up his son's excited ramblings about the families look at his friends at the orphanage, all the while Tsume's laughter echoing though the street, it seems Anko was doing her best to swipe some sake'

He paused a moment to re-adjust the packages in his arms, it was a wonder that the boxes he had picked up hadn't fallen apart under the weight contained therein, but he was happy they were holding up, if he had to guess Naruto hadn't ever gotten a gift before, and that was about to change.

"Oi! Pup, I'm back, and I have some things for you."

The whole of the gathered group turned back to the large man as he ducked under the awning as he moved up to the table that had had an extra chair pulled up to it by Ino. Drakus took the chance to nab one for himself as he dropped the smile mountain of boxes onto the table, narrowly missing the ramen in his zeal.

Naruto's eyes widened in awe as he looked at the packages, seven in total, his eyes started to water slightly as he looked to the man at the head of the table. "…Father…"

He waved the boy off, "Hey, none of that, consider this as a makeup for seven missed years. I felt it better to add that last one now because we may be someplace where I can't get you anything come October."

Naruto whipped the back of his hand across his cheeks before letting a small smile take over his features. He felt a soft squeeze on his shoulder and looked up into the smiling face of the Hokage before he turned to cast shy glances to the others, his silent thanks being sent out to them all. This had just become the best day of his life.

"O-Okay dad…thank you."

Naruto suddenly had his face pressed into one of the packages as Anko jumped onto his back, her arms draped over his shoulders, "Well gaki! Get on with it!"

Naruto let out a whoop as he picked up the first box, it was quite light compared to the others, as he was tearing the paper off, all a shade of yellow that matched his hair, some part of him noticed that his father had somehow managed to snatch the cup from Anko's hand, causing the girl to scowl at him. He snatched the lid from the box and was a bit surprised to see a grey shirt haphazardly thrown into the parcel.

"Naruto, I told you earlier that we'll be training quite a lot in our travels. That will be what you will be wearing unless we are to attend an official function. That tunic you hold is the very same one that I wore in my training, now it is yours."

Naruto stared at the odd clothing for a time, running his hands over the course fabric before grinning and throwing it over his head. Almost at once it went well past his feet, making the poor boy frown. "It's too big…"

Many failed to hide their chuckles and giggles at the saddened look that boy wore, "Pup, see that symbol on your chest? Touch it." He did as Drakus reached over and placed his hand over his, almost at once it gave off a white/blue glow that quickly swept through the whole of the garment. Much to the surprise to the gathered ninja the cloth _shifted_, shortening and sizing itself to fit the young boy perfectly, shrinking and conforming to his contours, but not to the point of discomfort, it still looked rather baggy in fact, but at least it fit him now.

The boy grinned before thanking his new father as he moved on to the next present. This one, however, he could barely even lift, and in the end Tsume had to be the one to take it from the pile for him, she herself a bit shocked at the mass. Again a frenzy of tearing lead to a look of surprise on the boy's face, a series of mummers spreading through the group at what the box held. There, staring back at him, was a steel wolf head, jaws bared in a silent snarl. His eyes finally strayed from the face to show it was attached to a much larger steel face, the whole of the thing covered in runes much as his knife was.

"That, my son, is to be your shield, wear it with pride. While it is not something that most learn to use at first, you and I are not like most, now are we? I know that you will one day put it aside, as I did, but until then it will be an important tool for you, never underestimate the value of a good shield."

"B-But I can't lift it!"

He gave a half shrug as he pulled out his tankard, flicking the runes on it quickly before taking a long draw, "I'm going to tell you the secret to using that shield, and any other weapon that I may give you."

At once the whole of the group seemed to lean in, especially Lee and Anko. "What is it!?"

Drakus motioned for his son to come closer, as soon as the boy was in range for a whisper his grin turned playful, "GROW STRONGER!"

Naruto shot back from his father, one hand nursing his now ringing ear as the gathered adults broke out in almost crippling laughter. Most of the kids were trying to pick themselves up from the group after the shock of the man's yell. Naruto frowned at the large slab of steel and tried once more to lift it from the box, the most he managed was to flip it over to show the straps and grip that would let him attach it to his arm.

He was half way through attaching the shield before Drakus dropped a large hand on his shoulder, "Now now, you're not going to be using that any time soon, we have to get your body in shape first. Now come on, you have five more gifts here."

Naruto gave a reluctant nod before pulling off the shield and pushing it aside. The next one was heavy as well, but this one he could actually lift. Once more the paper flew, this time a smile grew, rather than the look of surprise or awe that he had been showing, formed. Naruto pulled out what looked to be a short stick with a large steel head. The wood was dark with heavy use, the metal well tended to and razor sharp as the tip came to a needle point. Once more runes and carving adorned the whole of the item, the small cross guard below the blade ended in same gaping wolf heads the shield bore.

"That's the spear I used during the many hunts I went through as an aspirant, it killed the wolf which gave me this." He ran a hand gently over the furred cloak, his eyes lost in memory for a moment before he smiled once more. "Sakura, stand up for a moment, everyone give him a little space." They all did as asked before Drakus pointed at one of the symbols on the haft. Naruto turned the spear over before finding it, sending a nervous glance to those around him he pressed the rune. Almost at once the it blazed a brilliant silver before the wood extended four more feet, bringing the total length of the weapon to just under six feet. Tenten let out a low whistle at the sight of the weapon, while not a common weapon in a ninja village it was something that most were familiar with, as it was the most common weapon present in samurai forces. After looking at it for a few moments he thumbed the rune once more and placed it back into the box.

The next was a smaller present, this one little larger than his hand, he gave it a shake, smiling at the rattle it produced. Many of the girls perked up at the sight of the small box, most thinking it to be jewelry, and they were not very far off. Naruto's confused eyes met Drakus' smiling ones, "While that may not look it, it's an infinitely greater weapon than any you currently have, or may one day possess." Naruto plucked the small metal stud from the box and turned it over in his hands, it looked utterly plain, just a bit of metal. "It's a Commstud, once you put it on you can be in contact instantly with anyone else who has one, like myself. Never underestimate the ability to get into contact with your allies, or to coordinate an attack against a stronger foe."

The elderly Hokage peered over the blond boy's shoulder at the odd little device, they all had experience with radios and other comm. devices, however in the field, where most communications were easily disrupted or intercepted they tended to rely on hand signs or summons to deliver messages. "Drakus-san, are you sure such an item is safe? There have been…incidents in the past where radio transmissions were easily intercepted."

Tsume and the trio of older men were quick to nod; each had experiences where radios had failed them. "Normally, I would agree most of the communications in ninja villages are invented and cracked within a year; such is the way of the ninja. However, these are something I, and those I deem that need them, will use, so the odds of them being compromised are slim. In fact, only Naruto here has one beside myself. That will probably change later on in life, but for now, there is no one besides those here that will know what this little earring is capable of."

"How do I put it on? It's just a bead."

Drakus' face hardened slightly at that. "I won't lie to you Naruto, it will hurt when we put it in, and if you don't want to I'll understand, but you will be better off with it. Once it's in all you have to do is touch it to get in contact with me. There are other uses it has, but for now, that is all I will say."

Naruto was quick to put it back into the box and clap the lid on it, "I-I think I'll wait on it for now…" Drakus let out a bark of laughter but nodded, he could relate, it burned like no other when he had his put in, though the Century Studs hurt a hell of a lot more…

"The rest of your gifts may not be as impressive, but I think you will like them." Naruto tore into the last three and, to his surprise, was just as happy as with the first gifts. The last three were simple, but just, if not more, important than the others. The first two contained books on various ninja techniques and theories, including guides to sealing, genjutsu and ninjutsu, a set of blank scrolls and parchments with a rather expensive looking calligraphy set with high quality inks, enough to last years from the look of it, the last in the pile were a few storage scrolls to make it all easier to carry around. As Naruto moved to the last box Tsume and Anko started sealing up all the gifts, including the shield as only Drakus could carry the thing easily, while the rest were looking with interest at the last box.

Naruto's eyes went wide again, many wondering if his features would ever go back to what they once were, as he pulled out more clothing. These, unlike the plain tunic, were of high quality, all silks or finely wrought cotton textiles. The first, a set that looked like it was intended for everyday wear, was soft cotton outfit of a shirt, pants and sash. The shirt and pants were of a Chinese style, offering function and comfort even while it appeared to be for the more upscale of the village's class. The whole of the outfit was in shades of black and blue, going from a deep, midnight black on up to the same blue of his eyes at the hem and the braided trim and fastens. The sash itself was something that looked to be used on one's hips, acting as something like a belt, and was a blue that matched his eyes with sandals to match.

The next outfit looked to be made for official functions, much of it looking not unlike the clothing that Drakus wore under his armor. The pants were similar to the ones from the first set, however the tunic had a stiffer cut to it, coming up over the chest and shoulders and was sleeveless, the fastens going straight up his chest rather than at the angle that the other pervious used. Each fasten of this garment was tipped with gold beads rather than the braided knots the other had. The whole of the cloth was a dull grey, however rather than having just the hem of the shirt and pants with the color the flanks and inseam of the pants, as well as the sides and flat of the chest lapels had carefully embroidered vines from what looked to be gold and silver thread. Again a sash finished the look, a fine silk one that held several of the designs that Drakus wore, including the symbol of the Elemental Nations, showing his affiliation to the large man who had just adopted him. The outfit was finished by a set of heavy brown boots with folded cuffs and a few pairs of black socks.

The last of the box seemed a contain more casual sets of cloths, simple tee-shirts, turtle necked long sleeves, more of the same black pants and two more pairs of sandals emptied the large box out. All in all, it was more clothing than Naruto thought he would ever need, let alone own. After he and Drakus took a moment to put the clothing away, as well as a hearty round of congratulations from the adults of the group, they were all quick to go back to their drinks and the steaming bowls of noodle soup, something that Drakus had been more than happy to dig into.

* * *

Flashback no Jutsu…Release!

* * *

Once more the young genin to be tried to rise to her feet, and once more her left arm refused to budge, the weight of the shield was too great. Yes, she could lift it, while using both hands, however it was still too much to be able to move while wielding it. Once more she cursed herself for the lack of strength, Tsume had been able to do it, she was certain Tsunade would be able to do it with ease, so why was she left to flounder. Unbidden Drakus' words echoed though her mind, _'Grow stronger!'_ it seems he was right on the money when it came to that. As she resolved herself to create a new training regime she saw a pair of steel boots enter her vision, her resulting curse was none to quiet.

A deep, rumbling chuckle filled her ears as she pushed herself to her knees, "Well, well, well….Anko-chan, playing with someone else's toys…"

Another grumbled curse met his ears as she started un-strapping the shield, "Drakus-san?"

"I told you to leave off the san…"

"Drakus."

"Yes?"

"Shut up."

"Rodger that…" as she rose to her feet she cast him a quick glance before letting out an annoyed sigh and handing him the spear.

"Sorry I took them without asking…I just wanted to see what they were capable of…"

He was quick to pluck the spear from her hand before scooping up the shield as if it weighed nothing, making her scowl once more. "No real harm I suppose, although if my sergeant had caught you taking another aspirant's weapons he would have caved your head in."

Anko chuckled at that before noticing that Drakus' face was utterly devoid of mirth, she felt a cold sweat break out despite the warmth the tunic provided her. "Come on then, I think the other's will be up soon, and if I know Tsume she's going to need some rather strong tea this morning…"

As he turned to go back into the main house he felt a tug on the wolf pelt, "Drakus…"

"Hm?"

Yellow eyes met brown for a moment before her eyes turned to the grass, her voice seeming to go deathly quiet, "Why…" He cocked an eyebrow at her, more than a bit puzzled, "Why didn't you take me with you…why did you pick Naruto!"

He was a bit taken aback by her sudden roar, finding her now startlingly close to him. He took a deep breath before dropping a heavy hand onto her shoulder. "Anko…you have to understand, Naruto is…unique…"

Her eyes seemed to catch flame at that, "So I'm not special enough!? Why! I'm the top of my class! I get hit on the most, so I must be pretty, I'm smart, I make you laugh, why am I not good enough!?" a weak hand gripped the pelt as she dropped to her knees, drying desperately to keep the tears at bay. This was the man that saved her, the man that had become her reason to improve, for the chance of being noticed. So why had he picked another, why the brat?

The large man let out a tired, almost defeated sigh as he dropped to the ground beside her. "Anko…tell me, would you have become any of those things if I had taken you from here?"

He picked up her slight sniffle before seeing the slightest of nods. "You know I would have."

"Maybe…but tell me, what would you have left behind if you had gone with me?"

Her eyes flicked to his once more before looking at the hands taking fistfuls of black cloth, "Nothing, you know my parents died."

Drakus nodded slightly, his eyes cast in a shadow of memories, "Yes, they died, despite everything, but you aunt didn't, Hana didn't, nor did Kurenai or your cousins. You still have so many people here that love you and are important to you, and you to them. Naruto, the only people he has are the Hokage, who will probably not live to see us return, and the good folk at the ramen stand. Tenten and Rock, they didn't know him well because of the bastards in the orphanage, Ino and Sakura, I bet they wouldn't even have met if I hadn't met Naruto and started him down the path that lead to that fiasco. He has three people in this whole village that cares if he lives or dies. Even then, the council won't let him get the help he needs. So I took steps. If you had been in the same boat then I would have taken you or Iruka in a heartbeat, you know that, right?"

This time a wave of guilt crashed over her. She had seen Naruto sitting alone in the parks at times and didn't even spare him a second thought, busy catching up with her aunt or chase down her new little niece. The same couldn't be said when Naruto saw her, he had always come up to play with her or just keep her company if she happened to be alone. So why didn't she help him…

"W-What about Iruka-kun, he's all alone to."

"Yes, but he is actually getting the help he needs, Naruto had been on the street for two weeks when I found him. The orphanage had been falsifying the reports to the Hokage and the secretary wasn't letting him in to see him, now we've taken steps, but do you really think, considering his burden, that they are going to give him any kind of aid?"

"No…"

"I know it doesn't seem fair Anko, but you know I'll always be there for you, don't you?" He accented the statement with soft pat to her back, hoping to get through to her.

"Promise."

"Hm?"

Her eyes rose to bore into his own, the normal soft brown eyes were red-rimmed and shining with unshed tears, "Promise me, that's you'll always be there…like before…if I'm in trouble."

He shot her another of his wolf grins before letting his free hand delve under his cloak, after a moment a dull snap echoed through the clearing as he pulled a necklace from under the armor and yanked it free, the weathered leather breaking easily. "I promise you, Anko-chan, if you are ever in trouble, I'll find you." With a careful hand he tied the leather around her neck, the still long strap letting the odd little fetish fall between her breasts. It was a simple thing, a leather thong that reached down to wrap around a large tooth, a number of straight bones just before the tooth was tied. While at first she thought it was from the same wolf that he wore as a pelt, but this seemed to small, "That necklace…it was my best friend's…once upon a time. That strap is pretty old, so if you need to replace it don't feel bad, I've had to do it hundreds of times…"

She could tell by the tone in his voice that whoever this person was, he or she was important to him, and that person seemed to be long dead. "Drakus…I can't take this."

He took her hand and wrapped it around the necklace, despite the gesture he gave a hearty laugh, "Hey now, who says I'm giving it to you, I want it back some day…"

'…_So you know I'll come back…' _It was the unspoken sentiment that she saw reflected in his eyes, and despite herself she felt the heat rise into her cheeks, damn it, she was better than this, a stupid schoolgirl crush…

"Oh…do I need to give you two a minuet?"

Anko leapt from Drakus as though burned as she scowled at Tsume, who was sporting a bathrobe. Drakus just let out a bark of laughter before rising easily and turning to the house, "Come on Anko-chan, we've got to get food into these folk, you get tea duty, your better at making it than me."

The scene the trio come upon when they entered the living room was one of barely controlled chaos. Naruto was currently hiding behind the chair he had been sitting in, watching the scene before him in fear as the other adults were all in a laughing uproar at Tenten as she chased Ino and Sakura around the room, the later pair fleeing for their lives as Tenten screamed about her hair.

"Stand still so I can KILL YOU!"

Ino ducked a swipe from the irate brunette before backpedaling into the kitchen, "Why! What'd we do?"

"LOOK AT MY HAIR!"

She sidestepped a thrown coaster as she took off again, "What!? It was a joke!"

"I'M SUPPOSED TO MEET MY PARENTS TODAY!"

That gave everyone pause as the pale blond and the pinkette looked away from her in shame, at this point Tenten had dropped limply to the floor, silent tears streaming down her cheeks at the thought of what her par-what the people would think seeing her insane hair. If it had been normal pigtails it would have been fine, but they had put them up rather high on her head, even if she had the chance to get them undone and brushed out her hair would be strangely wavy, something that always drove her insane and knew would bother her though the whole meeting.

"S-Sorry Tenten…we didn't know, it was supposed to be funny…" Sakura looked crushed as she mumbled the words, she wasn't any good with looks, not like Ino, so she wasn't sure how to fix it.

"When do you have to meet them?"

Tenten glanced from into to a wall clock before letting out a strangled sob, "H-half an hour…it will take that long to get there…"

Suddenly the sound of cutting cloth filled the air, causing the group to look up in shock to see Naruto slicing part of the brilliant blue sash off, making two squares little bigger than his hands before ripping a longer strip, then cut it in two before returning the knife to it's sheath.

"Naruto…" Tenten was shocked to see the boy cutting up his present like that before he ran up to her and started coiling one of the pigtails into a spiral on her head.

"I saw a girl in the market do this! Ino-chan, help me." The platinum blond looked in confusion for a moment before she saw him lay the square of fabric over the new bun, she was quick to take up the other cloth and copy him, they both ended by tying the thinner strip around the bun to hold it all in place. "There! All better!" Naruto's grin faltered slightly as he tried to hold back his giggles, "Teehee…you look like a panda…"

Tenten looked up in confusion as Ino pulled out a small pocket mirror, showing Tenten the her new 'ears', despite the nickname she had to admit, they were much better than the abominations that had once made up her hairdo, while the deeper blue didn't go to well with her outfit, it also didn't stand out too badly against her hair, so it should help somewhat. It seemed Naruto noticed as well as he stared at her oddly. Before she could speak he grinned once more before wrapping the sash around her waist and tying it. He took a step back from his work and gave a quick nod.

"Perfect!"

"Naruto…you didn't have to-"

"Hey! Don't say that! I got a dad yesterday, and if you can get parents today then it's worth losing some stupid belt." A familiar large hand dropped onto his shoulder, the grin evident in the man's voice.

"The pup's right, a belt is nothing compared to parents. You get going to your meeting, we won't be leaving till at least noon, so you should be able to meet us by the gate and see us off."

Anko absently fingered the necklace before looking from the boy to the man, "Y-You leaving today?"

He gave a wide grin before nodding, "Yep, gotta get to Wave to finalize the treaty quick, or I won't make it back in time for your graduation."

Drakus was a little surprised to feel his son snatched from his hands before he heard a dull grunt of pain, he looked down to see the boy had been tackled by the meatball-headed girl who was gibbering 'thank you' in an almost incoherent rush, he was wondering for a moment if she wasn't having some kind of seizure before the girl kissed him on the cheek, leapt to her feet and dashed out of the compound, a shout of goodbye carrying on the air as she raced to the orphanage.

Drakus was having quite a hard time not laughing at the brilliant crimson that the boy's face had become, "Come now pup, on your feet, we've got a lot to get done today before we head out. The hokage better have everything ready for us to, otherwise there's going to be hell to pay…"

* * *

A/N2- Sorry about the wait again, for some reason this was rather hard to write, not sure why.... Anyway, hope I didn't' bore people too much with the clothing bits, some like it, some don't, I just wanted to get in there that he had formal clothes for some of his meetings that will happen after his return and the like. Has some building on Anko and a bit for Tenten.

Now that that's out of the way, Sakura and Ino will still be their fanatical fangirls selves, I just don't see them as anything else right now, as Naruto will be gone for almost ten years, Ino will still become a friend (As she's not doing well on the polls for now) and Sakura will have been brainwashed by her mom to be against Naruto, turning her into what is largely the personality from the manga (AKA, bitch)

Tsume is in something of a pickle, that will be explained a bit later on, not sure if I'm going to keep that OC around later on, but to my knowledge they never go into Anko or the other's teams and teachers (Save Kakashi) so I wanted to have something in there.

Shields are not something that a Marine trains with at first, such things coming later on their carriers, so he was going to start him young, and a brownie point for whoever gets the reference in that bit. ^_^

Next chapter will likely be the return to Konoha, showing some of Naruto's new skills and getting him back in touch with the others.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

A/N – As a minor note, most everyone will be in their standard outfits, even though they are older I'm leaving the wardrobe swaps for after the secondary (cannon) time jump.

First things first, sorry about the lack of posting on my part, got waylaid by the family for the holiday and just got back today (Sunday). Gotta say, their choice in destinations kinda sucked…scenery was nice, but as far as winter getaways is concerned, I don't consider Seattle to be at the top of my list, as I live in Colorado. Admittedly, it was twice as warm there as it was here (It was in the mid thirties there…) and as much as I love the cold, if I'm leaving a blizzard, I don't want to go somewhere where I wake up to frost. The rainforest was cool though.

Now for the thing I'm going to be getting some PM's about. After a lot of tinkering with my story, and bouncing ideas off of my mates, I've decided to take the current poll and use it for some future fics. The current pairings have been finalized and the next several chapters mapped out (Yay for five hour car rides…) this one will be the return and the re-introduction of Naruto as well as the kickoff of a return arc for our intrepid blond that will hopefully let some of you know the ideas I have in store for a few characters. You all know that Naruto will end up with Tenten at this point, as that will not change, however, the last two girls (Yes, two, I don't think my skills are high enough yet to handle more than that for one guy) will be introduced later and you will be introduced to one of Drakus' girls rather early on.

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 8

* * *

"Father?"

"Hm?"

"Are you certain I'm ready?"

A bark of laughter filled the warm evening air, one that was quickly accompanied by an oddly lyrical tone. "Now, now, Naruto-kun…you should know better than we that you possess more than enough skill to pass a simple genin exam."

Naruto gave a nervous tug on his cloak before looking to the woman walking beside his father, even in this light her crimson eyes could be seen, almost glowing in the pale moonlight. They'd been traveling with the odd woman for the last few weeks and while his father was utterly calm around her, he himself couldn't shake the odd feeling in the pit of his stomach. Somehow he just couldn't understand why she was here with them.

Shaking his head clear of his thoughts he re-checked his gear for the umpteenth time, "I know I possess the skills necessary, however I also know the council will not make it easy for me. Their still rather cross with you for your stunt the day we left."

A deep chuckle, almost a growl, filled the night, "Oh, I know quite well how angry they were, and still are. I seem to get a letter every week from them demanding your return. Frankly, I think it's time I relented. We'll be back in the village by dawn, then we will show them how a Son of Russ gets things done, yes? Naruto?"

The larger man let his smile widen as he saw his son's chest swell in pride, it was only at his past birthday, his sixteenth year, that he had past his test of manhood, and had been allowed to use his name once more, it was still taking some getting used to for the father/son duo. No longer was Naruto the small boy that barely came up to his knee, now the young man towered above most at two meters, still short compared to Drakus, but considering the number of…unique additions he possessed it was not surprising. Naruto had allowed his hair to grow longer, pulling the unruly locks into a high ponytail that still hung to the mid shoulder despite the height he kept it at. The boy's hair had changed over the past year, once sun-kissed blond hair now appeared more the hue of burnished gold thanks to the red stands that now intermingled in his hair. His 'clothing' was not unlike his father's, obscured by a large, grey wolf pelt, worn in the same style as his father with the head on his right shoulder.

That, however, is where the duo then differs. Where Drakus bore shining, silver/grey armor, with the odd lick of yellow, red and white paint and golden gilding, Naruto's was black as pitch with sporadic red, blue and purple highlights. Drakus' armor was also more on the gothic side, large and baroque, the intent to be as intimidating as it was impressive. Naruto's was streamlined, bands of black metal stretched over his chest, shoulders, upper arms and thighs in a way that molded to his body. His forearms and ankles clad in deep, purple bracers, the whole of the set adorned in blood red runes. A familiar dagger was slipped into the buckle of the belt that rested atop his hips, its shining ice-blue gem catching the moonlight and creating an odd light that marked the group's progress, however, that seemed to be the only weapon the boy bore.

The odd trio moved on in silence from there out, Naruto's confidence restored once more. As the light of the rising sun pierced the horizon the walls of Konoha came into view, making the three travelers smile slightly, each of them plotting their own moves once they were in the city proper.

"Dad, what is it that you and Konan-chan are going to do when we get there?"

The large man chanced a glance to the lovely bluenette at his side before tilting his head in thought. "You know, I have no idea…probably start hunting for a place for us to stay."

The pair gave a nervous chuckle; he didn't know what to do? That was a first. "Will you be staying with us, Konan-chan?"

A finely manicured nail came up to idly finger her lip piercing for a moment, seeming to be an old habit of hers when she was in deep thought, after a moment she brought her arms up to cross under her breasts, eyes closing as she gave a slight sigh, "No, I don't think I will, Drakus-san has generously offered to teach me the intricacies of diplomacy, and I don't think it would be proper for me to stay with you while being taught."

Now Naruto felt a bit bad, she was a stranger in the village, had just left her best friend for the chance to learn how to prevent war, and, while he had not been cold to her, he had certainly been cool. "Konan-chan…" She arched a carefully sculpted brow, "I-I know I haven't been that…kind to you over the past weeks…" She made to break into his speech before he raised a hand to stall, the odd silver rings built into his gloves catching the light of the dawn, "Please, let me finish…You are giving up just about everything for this chance to learn from my father, and I've been a jerk about it. If it's okay with dad, then why don't we go out to eat tonight, my treat, and you can tell me a bit about yourself."

The normally stern, red eyes seemed to soften before her lips quirked up into a smile, "I'd like that, Naruto-kun." However, as quickly as the look had come upon her it seemed to be replaced with one filled with devious intent, "Although…if you keep up your current track record I don't think you'll be able to attend this promised dinner…"

The younger man's face seemed to shrink into his pelt as Drakus laughed long and loud into the early light, again Konan's lighter laughter seeming to offset his nicely. It was common knowledge amung the two that the boy would get ambused and dragged away by different women in the various towns they visited, of the three places they had stopped in in they journey here, two had had it happen, and she knew from Drakus' stories that it was for from uncommon. This was the sight two gate guards were met with when the trio finally reached the gate. At once the duo stepped forward, raising their hands to stop them, "Halt! State your business in Konoha."

The travelers squared their shoulders as the taller man stepped forward, "Drakus, 'The Grey Wolf' and his son, Naruto, 'The Black Fang' returning from a training trip. Our purpose is to report to the Hokage in order to see about my son joining the ranks of your village's ninja force. In rout we were met by an ambassador from Ame who is seeking aid in stabilizing their village after the civil war."

The duo gave a quick glance to one another before nodding, the one with his face bandaged stepping forward, "Sir, you are expected by the Hokage, at your convince, we do ask, however, that a pair of ANBU accompany the lady, for the benefit of both of our villages."

Drakus cast a glance over his shoulder to the bluenette behind him who gave a slight nod, she expected as much, and saw the hidden message beneath the guards statement, _'we don't trust you, you're not going anywhere alone, but won't let you get hurt either.'_ At once a pair on ANBU appeared to flank the guards.

One, a woman with a cat mask and purple hair stepped forward to give a slight bow, "Drakus-sama, we would be honored to be you and your guest's escort during the duration of your stay with us."

The trio chuckled slightly at that as Naruto moved to stand next to his father, "Well, that's quite kind of you Neko-san, however, I think that your boyfriend wouldn't appreciate that, you see, we are moving to the village, and Konan-chan is hoping to be something of a permanent envoy while she learn from my father." Neko was thankful for her mask, she had been with Hatate for a little over two months now, and as far as she knew, no one in ANBU know of their relationship save a few of the Inuzuka trackers, did the boy have a similar skill?

"I see…then if you will follow me I can lead you to the central planning offices, they will be able to tell you if and where any free plots are located."

Drakus gave something of a regal nod to the cat-woman before they set out into the village. As the group moved they were met with quite a bit of attention, it's not every day that you see two very tall men in wolf pelts walking beside a beautiful, blue haired woman all the while being flanked by ANBU. Drakus smirked as Naruto tested the air before a wide grin took over his face, "Dad…"

"I know, I smell it to, why don't you run along while we get the boring stuff taken care of, meet us at the old man's office in an hour."

Naruto snapped to attention, a dull clang echoing through the air as he clapped a fist to his chest in a salute, "Sir!" At once the teen was gone, a grey streak in the early light as he made a snaking path down the side streets.

"Let me guess…that restaurant that he hasn't stopped babbling about for the last week?"

Drakus couldn't keep the chuckle from shaking his shoulders as his eyes seemed to fade more a moment, lost in the memory of the last time he was there, "Indeed, the boy is addicted to that ramen, and it's been three years since we were last here, if I had to hazard a guess, they won't recognize him, not in the slightest."

She quirked an eyebrow at that, "Oh? Why's that? He couldn't have changed that much."

This time Drakus' laughter was long and loud, "Konan-chan, trust me, you have no idea how much that boy has changed in the past year, if you're lucky we'll tell you later on."

* * *

"Two more old man!"

An annoyed sputter echoed from the back room of the small ramen stand as the elderly proprietor rushed from the back room, it had been three years since he had been called that, and he only knew of one boy crazed enough to call the knife wielding chef that where he could hear it.

"Naruto my boy! Is that yo-" Teuchi's eyes widened as he looked at the reddish blond seated before him, this…couldn't be Naruto. Why hadn't he paid more attention when he first served this man… "What in Kami's name happened to you!?"

The fur clad boy let out a laugh that was strangely reminiscent of his father as he placed his chopsticks on top of the empty ramen bowl, "I grew up! Dad and I went all over the Elemental Nations training, now I'm definitely going to be Hokage!" Naruto grinned though his newly re-applied 'mask', he hated doing it, but he knew better than to draw too much attention to himself.

"Y-You grew two feet!" Naruto simply grinned and scratched the back of his head. "Ayame! Come quick! You won't believe this!"

A few moments filled with the sounds of clattering dishes passed before the ramen waitress rushed from the kitchen, "Dad, what's wr-" the young brunette's eyes widened as she looked at the young man before her, a slight blush forming on her cheeks as she looks over the chiseled features. Gone was the rounded cheeks and button nose she once knew. In their place was a longer, angular face and a somewhat longer nose, his ever-present whisker marks were still there, but seemed to be darker, deeper, and with his now rust-tinged blond hair lent a more feral look to him. Naruto felt himself lean back as the girl leaned closer to him. "Your eyes…"

Naruto cursed slightly, he had forgotten to put up his illusion again. "Y-Ya Ayame-neechan, my eyes changed a little last year, dad says it's probably from puberty, they don't look bad to they?"

Ayame was still lost in his eyes, the once deep, sapphire orbs now had the pupil wreathed with an odd, rippling red that quickly faded to purple, then back to the same ocean blue, she'd never seen anything so beautiful in her life, "Wow…."

Naruto was now starting to edge away from the slightly drooling girl; this was getting a bit unnerving…"Neechan, your starting to scare me…"

The young woman seemed to come back to herself with a start, her face lighting up in a crimson blush as she backed away, "S-sorry Naruto-kun, it's just a bit of a shock, you've changed so much!"

Naruto let out a deep, almost purr like chuckle, the long gone higher pitched voice long gone as he wrapped a arm around her waist in a partial hug, "I know, I know, but don't worry, I'm still the same old Naruto!"

The brunette grinned at the young man, but it faltered slightly as she saw the smile not entirely reaching his eyes. She cast a quick glance to her father who had gone back to preparing the soup before leaning close to Naruto, her voice dropping to a whisper, "You know Naruto…if there's a problem, you can tell me, you know that right?"

For a moment his wide grin faded to a small smile, his real smile before giving a slight nod to the girl, "I know Nee-chan, and thank you. Nothing is wrong however."

She moved slightly to look him in the eyes once more, eyes that seemed to hold more wisdom that she had seen the boy ever possess. "You sure?"

His grin grew once more, "Trust me."

She let out a sigh of annoyance and pulled back as the ramen was put before him, the elderly chef's eyes becoming visible as he looked at the blond before him, "Hey now, you're not trying anything fresh with Ayame…are you boy?"

Naruto paled slightly, he had gotten a similar look when they were last in Suna…"N-No Teuchi-san, she's like a sister to me, you know that!"

The elderly man laughed even as Ayame looked a bit put out before her features became mischievous as she slid onto a stool next to him, "Oh? Well then, Naruto-kun…who would you be interested in? I'm sure you've met quite a few women in your travels…"

Naruto was the one to feel a flush this time as his thoughts went back to the pale blond from Demon Country, the girl had been rather…forward. "N-No way Ayame-neechan, we were way to busy training to think of anything like that…"

Her eyes narrowed dangerously as her grin became rather serpentine, "Your mouth says 'no' but your blush says 'yes'…Naruto-chan…"

The young man gave a violent twitch before inhaling his final bowl of ramen and making a mad dash from the stand, a faintly heard 'goodbyethanksfortheramen' echoing through the street. The waitress gave an evil cackle as she moved back to the cook top, her father's laughter carrying from the back room.

"What's so funny guys?"

Ayame perked up as she spotted a familiar silhouette duck under the curtain, the twin buns a dead giveaway. "Tenten! You just missed it!"

"Huh?"

"Naruto-kun is back!"

Tenten's eyes went wide even as a small smile formed, "R-Really? You're not pulling my leg are you?"

Ayame gave a rather un-ladylike snort as she tossed her hair over her shoulder, "You think I would lie about something like that? The brat was just here!" Her voice dropped low as she dashes around the counter and pulls the younger girl close, "And let me tell you, he's a looker now…you better act fast if you don't want him to be snatched up by someone else!"

Now it was Tenten's turn to sputter as she pulled back from the obviously insane waitress, "W-W-W-W-What are you talking about!? You know I don't like him that way!?"

Ayame's grin turned sly once more, "Oh…is that why you eat here at least twice a week…and never stop looking there!" She turned the young woman's shoulders toward the far wall, a wall adorned with pictures of different customers, over half containing a mop of unruly blond hair. Tenten's face grew pink as she shook free of the older girl.

"He's my friend! That's all, you know that!" Ayame just gave something of a halfhearted shrug.

"Say what you will girl, but I suggest you go see him before you make any final decisions. He's probably gone to see Lord Hokage, he's going to go the academy soon after all, and he'll need to get enrolled."

The bun-haired girl seemed lost in thought for a moment before shaking her head slightly, "He just got in, I'm not going to go bother him now, I'll just get in the way."

Ayame scowled slightly before flicking the girl on the forehead, She rubbed the slightly red spot in annoyance as she scowled at the ramen girl, "Don't go all broody on me girl, you like the boy, you've been his friend forever, I know he'll want to see you, so get going!"

"But-"

"Go. Now. Or no more dumplings."

Tenten paled slightly at the thought of the loss of her favorite food. After she and Lee starting coming here so often the duo had branched out into some different foods, all of it just as good as the ramen that Naruto swore by. Younger woman was quick to run from the stand before the waitress could make good on her threat. Ayame pulled the cloth from her head with a sinister grin, "Dad, could I take the afternoon off? I have an errand I need to take care of!"

The elderly man poked his head out from the back, he took a quick glance around the little stand and saw only one other person currently there and nodded, "Sure honey, but I'm going to need you tonight for the dinner rush."

She shot him a dazzling smile before taking off her apron, "Don't worry dad, that should be plenty of time." Her father spared her a wave as she strolled calmly from the establishment, she needed to try and follow not only a ninja in training, but a young man trained in ways she couldn't imagine, this wasn't going to be easy…

* * *

Naruto, along with Koana, were currently fighting the urge to hide behind the couch in the circular office. Drakus was furious, and there were few things scarier than a man of his dimensions frothing at the mouth in a blind rage.

The reason for his current state?

He had just been informed by Sarutobi that, despite their hard work and planning, the civilian council had found a way to block Naruto from taking part in the coming genin exams that were currently a month away. Apparently they had found a loophole in the academy charter that said you had to have a minim number of days to be allowed to graduate.

"Is there nothing that can be done!"

Even Sarutobi Hiruzen, the great Fire Shadow, was starting to sweat a bit at the raging giant. "No Drakus-kun, I'm sorry, but it was something they actually didn't do, it's been on the books here for the last hundred years, in an attempt to keep those of unique bloodlines or outside training from graduating early and not learning the proper skills in teamwork and the camaraderie of those in their grade."

Drakus took a deep, steadying breath, seeming to inhale so long that he couldn't have been able to hold that much air. "I see…it's good to know that such a law is in place for the whole…it's just rather frustrating…Is it possible to get my son enrolled in time for the next graduating class?"

The elderly leader took a moment to fill his pipe before nodding. "To my knowledge, yes, I don't see anything that would stop him from being able to graduate at that time, it may even be for the better, I believe that young Tenten and Lee are in that class, it's possible that he could end up on their genin team when the time comes."

Naruto's smile lit the room as Konan patted him on the shoulder, she knew quite well how much he wanted to be included in such a team, there were three things he wouldn't stop talking about on their trip back to the village. One was ramen, the next was seeing the old man, the last was the four friends he had here. A shadow passed across her features for a moment; even she had more friends than that back home.

Drakus looked to his son for confirmation, getting an almost violent nod in response before he let out a sigh. "Very well, we will wait. Now tell me, what is the status on our…other projects?"

Sarutobi glanced at the other two in the room before arching an eyebrow at Drakus who simply nodded. The Hokage pulled out a file that was several inches thick and looked to be quite worn by this point. "We've got everything finalized with the plot of land you have requested, it will be ready for construction whenever you are ready."

The larger man nodded, "Good, and what about the squad I've proposed? We have several interested parties already."

"I see…you've begun recruiting already then, have you?"

Drakus ignored the Hokage's scowl as he gestured to Naruto, who was quick to move forward and hand the elderly man a scroll. "We have potential members already, enough to make a proper squad for my tem to lead, as well as several advisors and guards for them that would be under my command."

"How is it you got these people to agree? Naruto isn't even a genin yet!"

Drakus, Naruto and Konan all gave mirthless smiles as she stepped forward, "Rank means little to this endeavor, Lord Hokage, and you should know that with the proper demonstration of skills that anyone can be impressed."

He allowed a small smile to form as he took a long draw on his pipe. "A statement more true than you know, Konan-san. As you know I cannot order anyone to take part of your group, as it is possible that you will come into direct conflict with the village. That said, you can ask for volunteers, something that I think Naruto will be able to take advantage of in the coming year, I'm sure there are a few that will be interested in joining within the his class. You are also going to be able to peruse the current populace, just as you have in the other villages. Your squads will be under the direct command of the Elemental Lords, correct?"

"Yes and no. We will be asked to look into situations, then asked to make the proper decisions for the good of the nation. Ending civil wars, negotiating trade disputes, whatever we may be needed for. I've been helping keep this world at peace for a long time, but I sense there is something coming that may require more of a…direct approach. That's where we will come in. Your standard issue peacekeeping force."

The elderly leader leaned back in his chair, his eyes closed in thought. On paper it was a good idea. A squad made up of members from all the hidden villages that wished to participate, in an effort to help everyone. The only issue being potential corruption from within, but with Drakus spearheading the movement it was unlikely that anything like it would rear its head. "Very well, you have my support in this. I know the Fire Lord can order me to comply, however I think this is something that can be good for us, anything that can stop another great war…"

The trio nodded once more, each thinking about the horrors they had witnessed in their travels and struggles. "My Lord, if that is all we will make for an inn and begin planning for our home, by your leave…"

The Hokage nodded before letting another small smile grace his features, it was clear to the group his face was far better suited for the smiles, rather than the scowls he was forced to wear much of the time. "Oh course Drakus, Naruto, I hope that I will be seeing you at the stand tonight, we have to get the others together to welcome you back, I'm sure that everyone will be egger to see you are here to stay."

Naruto let his soft, true smile grace the room before giving a slight nod. "Oh course Hokage-sama, It'll be great to see everyone again."

'So…you really have grown up…Naruto.' He nodded before pulling out a few blank scrolls, pausing to unfurl them as he began to write, "I'll get everything set up, and we'll see you tonight, yes?"

His answer was a wide grin, "Oh course, just let us know when! We have to show Konan-chan the wonders of Ichiraku Ramen!"

The group chuckled before heading out the door and into the busy street once more. As the trio moved along the busy district it was something of an odd feeling for Naruto, last time he was here he was still easily recognized, and had been on the receiving end of the same, hate filled looks and threats. However, three years had seemingly changed that, not to mention his…trials. Now every look was one of curiosity, many seemed to at least be somewhat familiar with his father; more still were eyes Konan with curiosity, jealousy or lust, seemingly to her annoyance. Naruto could feel a few such looks directed his way as well now. His pelt was well maintained and made him look like more of a rich clan member rather than a young man trained and tempered in war. The fact that the father son duo towered a foot, at the least, over the rest of the crowd didn't help things any.

Naruto was just starting to feel a bit self-conscious when he spotted a familiar figure turning down a side street, heading towards the tower. Almost at once the boy's posture straightened and he looked to his father. "Dad! I think I spotted Tenten! I'm going to go track her down!"

Drakus just gave a dry laugh as he made a shooing motion. He watched the blond streak away before he turned to the bluenette next to him. "So then Konan-san, do any of these places look good to you?"

Crimson eyes scanned the different hotels and inns that were arranged close to the tower, in an effort to keep the visitors to the village from having to walk very far when they are wishing to speak to the Hokage, she had just seen one that looked promising as Drakus seemed to stiffen a bit, his nostrils flaring as his right hand twitching slightly, a reflex that showed how much he was fighting the urge to go for one of his weapons. He turned his head slightly to regard the woman next to him before pulling a small leather bag from his hip and with a smile pressed it into her hands. "Forgive me, Konan-san, it seems that my attention is required elsewhere. Why don't you go ahead and get yourself a room, feel free to splurge a bit, we have been on the road a long time and I'm sure you're tired. Naruto and I will be along in due time. I'm sure it won't take me long to get this…sorted."

Konan nodded slightly and watched the giant turn and moved down the street with a frown, never in all the time she had known him did he ever seem so…serious. She glanced to the bag in her hand for a moment before tucking it into her traveling cloak and moving after him, ducking and weaving through the streets in an effort to remain hidden. She knew whatever it was, he would try and handle it alone, as she was intending to be his second in command, she wasn't about to allow that.

After a time she realized she wouldn't be able to keep hidden any longer, he had just stepped into an open area, heading for a large, fenced in forest before he stopped by a large fence that was coated in warnings and danger signs.

With a surprising level of grace for one as large as he was he leapt over the fence with what looked to be little more than a flex of his leg before he began to move through the forest. As he vanished she moved up, intent to find out what it was about this place, The Forest of Death, that interested him so much…

* * *

A/N2: I know, a bit annoying that it's all filler, nothing of any real substance other than Naruto's apparent changes. Next chapter will come quickly, that I promise, it's just the little filler bits that seem to slow me down, don't know why, others have issues with fights or lemons, I never really seem to have that problem, it's just the downtime stuff that gets me…

If there are some typos and the like, I apologize and hope that you all will forgive me, it's rather late when I got this done, and didn't want to wait for more free time to get it posted. I'm sure I've annoyed many of you already with the wait ^_^


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 9

* * *

Why did she ever agree to work today?

It was just do damned boring this time of year, no holidays, less birthdays, even the prime growing season was starting to come to a close. Granted, she wanted the money, but still, there had to be better ways…

It was still a month before her birthday maybe she could wait…

A rather sly smile formed on her face.

Why wait, when she could find some hapless boy to get some things for her…

Suddenly, Ino Yamanaka wasn't bored anymore, but what boy could she lure in? At fourteen, she was convinced that she was the most beautiful kunoichi of her age.

It didn't hurt her opinion any to see the boys in class all drool over here. Well, all but three, but what did they know…one always slept, one had the emotional range of a rock, and the other…well he was forgiven. Every girl in the class was after him.

*Sigh* 'Sauske….'

Before her imagination could get too involved in a fantasy she spotted a shock of pink hair moving past the store window and had to stifle a groan. She didn't have the patience to deal with Sakura today…

Beyond her annoyance however, was the sense of loss, it had all started that night so long ago, when they went to Naruto's party…how it went so bad was simple, Sakura's mother. She had been livid that her 'little angel' had been gone when she came into her room that morning, or so she was told. It wasn't that that had annoyed the platinum blond, it was the simple fact that she had claimed that Naruto, or in her words, 'the beast' had kidnapped her little girl and had corrupted her somehow.

That was in the days after the party. The way Sakura kept acting every time Naruto would come back was the only real reason that she remembered it all so well, she was four after all. Things only got worse when Naruto and his dad had come back for Anko's graduation, Naruto had found Sakura and herself in the park and had tried to play, only to have Sakura yell at him for getting her in trouble then dragging her away from the saddened boy. Before he had completely faded from her sight she had seen him rubbing at his eyes, even she didn't think it was fair…

She had been less than happy with her best friend for that incident, and much to her sorrow, that was not the last event that would drive the wedge between the two. Naruto had apparently insisted to his dad that they come back once a year, and like clockwork, one month after his birthday they would come, that's not to say they would never hear from the duo, they had been good about sending letters to them, for her, it was like an odd flip-book. You could see his handwriting improve, you could see in the pictures that were sent how he would change. Then three years ago, after they showed up in a flurry of activity, it had all stopped, no letters, no visits.

She'd asked her dad about it, and he told her that apparently something had happened to Anko, that she was found by them and was hurt, her master, Orochimaru, nowhere to be found, it seems he had abandoned her. Ino had gone with Tenten and Lee to check on the woman and was surprised, she didn't really look hurt, but she did look different. Tenten had been the one to find out, Lee and herself had gone back to her parents shop to get some flowers when Anko had woken up for a moment, and had scared Tenten to death. Apparently she didn't have any memory of the girl, indeed, almost all her memories from her childhood were simply gone. She didn't remember her parents, her relatives, nothing but her name and some of her jutsu.

She and Lee had come back to hear the yelling, the bangs of things being thrown and Tenten scrambling out of the room, tears streaming down her cheeks. Anko had been a hero to her, a strong ninja, an attractive woman at that, smart, fun, she was everything she wanted to be, just like Tsunade. Now she didn't know her, and was violent when she tried to insist that they were friends.

It was heartbreaking for the young girl, but not as much as it was for Naruto.

For Naruto, she was more like his big sister, even more than Ayame, as the ramen waitress was usually confined to working at the stand, where Anko would go to play and train with him, when she wasn't stalk-following Drakus around the town, trying to convince him to train her. That was the next problem, apparently the only thing she DID remember, was an intense fear of the man, almost on an instinctual level, she herself had seen it happen, the second the man had stepped into the hospital Anko had tensed, and every floor he traversed to get to her seemed to make the young woman more and more terrified. She'd never seen anything like it, and later had to ask her father about it.

According to him, it was probably an aftereffect of whatever it was Orochimaru had done to her, and that Drakus and Naruto had shown up at the wrong time and had been imprinted in her psyche as something associated with that event.

Sometimes her dad was too smart for his own good…now if only he could help keep the forehead away from her…

The ringing of the door forced her mind back to the present, why did she have to be the one working today!?

* * *

Sakura's day had been going great!

First she got to go shopping for some new clothes for the academy as a reward for acing the last test. Then she and her mother went to her favorite dumpling stand for lunch, where she ran into Sauske and got to talk to him for a little…well….she talked, she just took his dumplings and left.

Indeed, her day was going great, the only hiccup was the fact she had to go to her rival's shop in order to get some flowers. Her mother had told her that they would be visiting the Kyuubi victim's memorial stone later on, so they would get some flowers for her father. The sound of the bell announcing her arrival annoyed her, she had been hoping to sneak up on the blond and annoy her with her good fortune with Sauske.

Ah well, now she would just get to do it to her face that much sooner.

"Hey Ino-pig."

"Forehead…"

Sakura took a brief lap of the store, not sparing the blond a look before she completed her circuit. She already knew what she would be getting; now it was time to twist the knife.

"You know it's such a nice day out pig, maybe you should go out for a wallow, you know, pretty up a little for a guy." While there was no real reaction, Sakura reveled in the slight twitch of her eyebrow before she tucked an unseen strand of hair behind her ear.

"Well, you are right about one thing, even covered in mud I'd be able to get any guy I wanted. What about you, forehead? Find a blind guy yet? He'd be the only one that could handle the glare from that head of yours." Much like Sakura a moment ago, she loved her former friend's twitch.

Sakrua's hands came to clasp behind her back as she leaned toward the blond a bit, "Oh, I don't know, I think I already found a man, Sauske-kun and I just finished a lllooovvveeeelllyyy lunch at my favorite dumpling stand. How about you Ino, had any nice weeds lately?"

Ino's eyes hardened as she tried to will Sakura to burst into flames. This pink haired tart had been on a date with HER Sauske-kun!? No! Never! She let a rater unladylike snort filter through the air as she tossed her ponytail, more of a reflex really, like the style's namesake she wanted to be rid of this little fly, "Whatever Sakura, I'm sure he just walked away without saying a word to you, after all, why would he want to be seen with someone who has the figure of a plank of wood. Now what do you want, I have a business here to run."

Sakura was seething through clenched teeth, she was right on the first count, no matter what she or her mother said to the hard haired teen he just walked away, not sparing a glance for the two women. Before Sakura could make a comeback however there was the sound of a clearing throat from behind the pinkette, causing both to look up in surprise, they had apparently been so caught up with one another they didn't even hear the bell.

"Forgive me for interrupting, but I would like to buy some flowers…"

The voice was deep, but seemed to hold an underlying playfulness to it, in some ways it was like a wispy sigh, in others a rumbling purr, regardless, it made the two girls shiver slightly, if that was what this man's voice sounded like when he was just talking normally, what would he sound like in the heat of the moment? Slowly the duo made to look at the man behind Sakura and had to stifle their gasps.

He was tall! Huge! While the duo knew one man taller, one who was a giant even compared to this man, he was still massive to them, the tops of their heads just coming to the crest of his shoulder. The pair were speechless as their eyes roamed, in Ino's case hungrily, over his features. Long, rust-blond hair pulled into a high ponytail, almost a topknot in a way, to come like a spiky waterfall about his head. Strange blue eyes sweeping over the two with a look of confusion as to why they would look at him like this, although Ino noted that they seemed to dull slightly when they came to rest on Sakura, seems the boy had good taste.

"If there is a problem I can come back later…"

Ino was around the counter so fast you would think she was on fire and this man had the only source of water in the world, "No, no! No problem at all, welcome to Yamanaka Floral, how may I be of service today?"

A deep, rumbling chuckle filled the store, one that was oddly familiar to the blond… "Wow…I think that's the best you've ever greeted me Ino…"

The girl in question arched a carefully sculpted eyebrow, she was certain she had never seen anyone like this man before in her life, she would DEFINETLY remember. The silky-soft looking hair, the beautiful eyes that seems to flow from blood red, through her favorite shades of purples into ocean blue, the broad shoulders and defined physique that make him look like a god of ninja, the deep, almost tattoo like whisker marks on his-

Wait…whisker marks?

"Oh sweet Kami….Naruto?"

Her answer was the same, fox like smirk she had grown so fond of.

"How…When…Look at you!"

Even as his lips parted to answer Ino felt a strong hand at her elbow and looked back to the pinkette in confusion to see her former friend's eyes were like steel, "Ino, I think we should go."

If anything, Ino's gaze was worse than when she thought her rival had had a date with Sauske. With a non-to-gentile jerk of her arm she freed herself and rounded on the girl. "Sakura, I'm only going to say this once. Naruto is my friend. If you don't like that then you need to find a new place to shop for flowers, because I, and I'm certain my family, will not be serving you or your mom ever again."

Sakura's jaw was slack as she looked at the blond before her, her eyes flicking for a moment to the man behind her who was looking at the floor sadly. Her mind ghosted back to the day she had met the boy but shook it away violently, he mother had told her the truth, how could Ino trust that…that THING.

Large hands covered in soft leather came to rest gently on Ino's shoulders, the silvered metal of the rings each finger bore catching in the light as he made to turn Ino slightly, "It's alright Ino, I can come back later."

Ino shot a pleading look to the tall blond before letting out a sigh, "Alright…alright, just take what it is you were wanting then you can pay me later, maybe over some ramen?" He let out a chuckle at how her eyes shown with hope.

"We'll see, I think the old man was going to have a welcome home party for us later on, that may have to be when we get our dinner."

She frowned a bit at the thought of having to share her time with him with others before she cursed herself, this was Naruto, sure he had changed a lot, but she liked Sauske…even if the darker whiskers, pelt and tan made him look like some kind of a barbarian love god…her mind was quick to spin a scenario that she savagely stomped down and locked away behind three inches of metaphorical steel, 'MO! Bad Ino! No dirty thought about your friend!' Naruto made half a dozen swift, purposeful strides to the back of the room and snatched up a bouquet seemingly at random before he gave one last smile and left the store with a half wave.

Naruto was back, and he was a certified hottie! Time to get the rumor mill a'rollin'.

* * *

The teen in question bit back a sneeze as he moved down the street, he'd lost sight of Tenten as the crowd had thickened, but her scent was still strong, soy sauce, sweet bean paste and polishing oil, it was a heady combination that seemed to suit her, he only hoped that he could catch up with her before he ended up getting called away.

Rounding another corner he spotted a familiar food stand and smirked, if he was lucky the damn dog would have died in the time he was gone….

All in all, it was a bit surprising how well things went at the stand, it seems that Ayame and Ino weren't the only ones that didn't recognize him, hopefully Tenten and Anko-neechan would though…If Anko would see him at all…

Looking about at the overcrowded street he glanced at the container of sesame dumplings and made his choice, unknown to him not an hour ago his father had leapt similarly over a fence, now he was taking to the rooftops in hopes of keeping the dumplings intact. The familiar rush of chakra flowing into his muscles was welcomed like an old friend, that sudden feeling of invincibility as it permeated every fiber of your body, or the almost serene feeling of it leaching into the world around you.

It was like a drug, one that was naturally a part of you and would never leave, unless you used it, and even then it would fill back up in time.

With a spring in his step he started hopping from rooftop to rooftop, with a bit of luck he would get there in time to see the stores new stock. He smirked as he thought back to Tenten's first year in the academy, apparently when her parents had found out that she wanted to be a ninja they opted to settle down and call in their favors to their distributers. Now the little family were the proud owners of one of the better ninja supply stores in the village, in his mind it was the best, Tenten's mother and father never were mean to him as Tenten had apparently been quite talkative about him over the years, hell, when they found out he was responsible for 'the cutest buns ever' he was their unofficial son.

Naruto sniffed the air again and cursed softly, she apparently frequented this area quite often, her scent was crisscrossed all over the place, and while he was good in the woods, cities were entirely different monsters, the air never really could get into these places, and as such the smells were oppressive, especially because he was still getting used to these senses. He could smell garbage with bad meat in it in the ally below, and the sewer was apparently having problems on this street as well…thankfully the smell of flowers was overriding most other the other scents so at least it wasn't all bad.

Noticing the direction that the lingering trail was making he smiled and shunted more chakra into his legs, taking the houses two at a time.

It seemed Tenten was going home.

* * *

Whoever had planted this forest was sure a sadistic individual.

Everywhere Drakus looked seemed to hold new kinds of deadly flora and fauna, he spotted what looked to be massive venues fly traps, one of which looked to have nabbed its meal, if the hoof jutting out at an odd angle was any indication. Another direction held vines that had thorns adorning the whole of the plant, he saw an odd glint fall from the spines every now and again, it was sure to be poison. As he skirted a copse of giant trees his nostrils flared, there were so many scents here, the sweetness of flowers, the sickness of rotting veg, and the musk of a dozen different kinds of animals. *Sniff* big cats to the north, high in the trees, *sniff* a canine breed to the west, wolves…

But above it all, a stranger scent, one he hadn't picked up for three years, and hoped he would get to meet again, however, he didn't like the underlying scents with it. First smoke, a fire had been going recently, second was the sickening, greasy stench of something…dark, then snakes, and a scent he would hope would never be amongst it again, a woman.

As he pushed through the last grouping of ferns, his wolf pelt being tugged at by unseen thorns he came into a small clearing holding a small tent and a fire pit. Higher up, on some of the branches about half way up some of the massive trees he spotted rustling tanned leather.

"Anko…"

* * *

Konan was having a less than pleasant experience as she made her way through the tree tops.

This place was damp.

She hated damp.

It made it so much harder for her to function.

She was hopping at a rather lazy pace through the forest, pausing now and again to make sure that she had not lost sight of her target that was currently picking his way through the floor of the forest with shocking grace for one so large, the only real nose the odd crack of a branch and the rustling of the fur dragging on the brush. Not for the first time she cursed as traveling cloak displaced some of the leaves on the tree she was crouched on. With a flick of slender wrist small leaflets of paper spun a small hammock, catching the offending foliage before they could give away her presence. She was no fool; she knew how keen a nose the two men had, hence why she was so high up at the moment, and keeping a clear gauge on the direction of the wind so she couldn't be picked up, still, some part of her was sure he knew she was there, he seemed far too aware of his surroundings not to be.

Shunting chakra to her ears as she saw his lips move she came to a better vantage point on one of the branches that was woven into the canopy of the clearing. She looked down in surprise to see a woman currently seated on a branch, a purple haired girl who had it pulled up into an odd, peacock like plume, and she looked to be in pain, holding her neck as she bit her lip, doing her best not to cry out into, what she thought, was an empty forest.

* * *

This was not her best day ever.

First she had the great honor of returning from an A class assassination mission where the client had…misinformed the Hokage about the target's missing-nin bodyguards…then the elders tried to short her on the pay…Now here she was, in the only place she really felt comfortable, and the damned seal was acting up. First, it was only a dull ache, then, as the day dragged on, it grew. Now she was forced to sit and writhe against what felt molten steel being poured on her neck.

Her vision was blurring, sweat pouring down her body as she whimpered, biting her lip to keep from screaming into the shade of her forest.

She was so consumed with keeping her herself in check she didn't hear the voice calling out to her, but she did feel the branch shudder under the weight of another person joining her on the tree. A blurry eye cracked to see an odd silhouette, the last thing that she saw before the pain overcame everything she knew, before darkness took her.

Definitely not the best day ever.

* * *

Naruto was smiling softly to himself as he approached the door, he was wondering how much Tenten had changed, over the years he had four people he would put into the 'friend' category; Ino, Tenten, Lee and Gaara. Of those, he had one best friend, and that was Tenten. His dad had been a bit surprised to hear that, thinking that Gaara would have filled that slot well enough, but to Naruto they were more like brothers, each knew what it was like being…different.

Feeling oddly nervous his hand hovered over the door, what would she think about his changes…how would she react to the new things he had to tell her, the places he had been to…the lives he had taken.

Taking a deep, steadying breath he finally knocked on the door.

That was a mistake.

* * *

Tenten let out a yelp as leather clad knuckles struck her forehead; it wasn't much of a hit, but still…

Tenten had been ecstatic to hear that Naruto was back in town and had taken to the streets to search for him. The rational part of her mind was sure that they would meet up sooner, rather than later, regardless of what she did, but that didn't stop the little ghost in the back of her mind telling her to get it in gear.

All in all, her search had been less that productive, the streets were packed, and while she knew to look for his father, there was no guarantee that they would be together as, more times than not, Naruto would take off to the ramen stand once they got into town, one of the reasons that she went there so much, while they would normally come back every November, like clockwork, that had changed with the Anko incident.

Tenten, Lee, Ino and Kurenai had all done their best to try and help the 'crippled' kunoichi, but the only one that seemed to make any headway was Kurenai, the rest she simply tolerated, but was strangely quiet around. To this day it seemed she had yet to really come back to herself. Each of the girls were ones she was familiar with, but Nauto and Drakus were both people she avoided like the plague. It still hurt to see the look in Naruto's eyes every time he looked at the purple haired kunoichi.

With a shake of her head she brought herself back to the task at hand, she had just gotten home and was feeling a bit…odd, like someone had been following her for the last several minutes, absently she had looked out the window to see the strange mop of hair moving to her house, held firmly in one hand was what looked to be flowers, in the other was an odd box of some form. She watched the strange man for a few moments as he seemed to be hesitating. Letting out a heavy sigh she left her room and headed to the front door, maybe this guy was looking for her father, wouldn't be the first time that he had people over from their traveling days.

Squaring her shoulders she put on a smile and opened the door. Only to be met by dull pain shooting through her skull as she got knocked in the head. At once her training from the academy kicked in and she let herself fall back from the blow, her left foot coming up to kick at the man's chin.

A blow that never landed as his forearm easily blocked it, sending a shot of pain through the top of her foot, it felt as though she had just kicked solid steel! Not to be undone she kept with the movement, turning her kick into a back hand spring and, as she came back to her feet let loose a brace of shrunken. The man's shout of surprise was cut short as the odd fur he worse came up with a flourish, scattering the blades with no trouble at all.

Maybe she should get a cloak, she never thought a bit of fur like that could deflect thrown weapon so easily.

"What the HELL is wrong with you!"

Tenten's hands were already at the small of her back, ready to bring out her kunai when the voice cut through the air. The young teen froze as the cloak was lowered and she was afforded a look at the man before her.

"Naruto?

* * *

The blonds' face was a mask of fury as he blocked the kick to his jaw, everything was a blur for a moment as he saw his attacker drop back and whip the blades at him from well out of reach, he'd blocked with his fur as his father had done many times and thanked the wolf once again for saving him. Naruto, as his father before him, had to survive in conditions that no normal man could be expected to survive in, its how he earned his fur, being forced to kill the wolf for food, warmth and to an extent, shelter. He would never question his father's insistence on keeping his fur with him at all times ever again.

After he had called out to the person everything seemed to calm down again, but the damage was done, the little bouquet of flowers had been mangled as he grabbed the edge of his cloak, the small box of dumplings had been upset, probably making the little balls crumble.

Those were his apologies for Tenten!

He was fighting the urge to send chakra into his arms for a royal beating when he noticed the bun hairdo belonging to the girl who was crouched before him, looking at his face in shock. Silently he cursed, he was taking after his dad too much, he needed to control that desire for a fight.

Maybe…

Ok, fighting was fun, it just had its time and place…

Maybe…

Mentally kicking himself he raised the damaged flowers to the girl in front of him and smiled weakly.

"Surprise?"


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…

A/N: Chapter ten of my first fic here on FanFiction, I think I need a cookie or something….

When it comes to Naruto, a lot will be explained this chapter. I know it took a bit to build it up, but I don't like to let loose with an alpha strike early on, it's just my way ^_^ As to Naruto's affinities, I'm thinking of Globetrottering that up a bit, I've seen wind done almost exclusively, and it makes sense, after all, it is his canon affinity. That's why I feel the need to change it. Nothing wrong with the standard, but if people wanted normal then they wouldn't be here reading our tales, no? I'm willing to take suggestions, I'm leaning toward dual affinities that can combine in some way, right now I'm being tempted by Earth/Fire for Lava, something I don't see much, or Wind/Lightning for Storms, but again, willing to take suggestions.

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 10

* * *

No way…

There was just no way!

Three years. For three years she had heard nothing; not a letter, not a visit, not a gift, and now here was this giant of a man, wearing her best friend's face!

"N-Naruto?"

If anything his foxy grin just grew, "The one and only…I think…"

Tenten bit back her giggle at the thoughtful look on his face before she rose on shaky legs, adrenalin was a powerful ally, right up until it left you and made you weak as a kitten, if not unconscious.

Tenten took a few cautions steps to Naruto before reaching out an with a slight tremble to her hand poked his shoulder, the digit sinking through the thick fur of his pelt and hitting the armored plates under it hard. Still not believing what she was seeing her hands formed a shaky sign and pressed it to his abdomen before muttering a 'Kia'

The tingling sensation swept over the duo as a pulse of chakra flooded the pair, making the hair on the back of Naruto's neck stand as he fought the urge to shiver. It was an odd sensation, having another's chakra sweep through your body, not unpleasant, but at the same time, not welcome when it was just pushed upon you like that. Tenten's eyes widened as she looked up into his off blue orbs.

"Naruto?"

He let a low, rumbling chuckle shake his shoulders before taking a step back, giving the duo some much needed space. "Careful Tenten, you keep saying my name like that and I'm going to think it's not mine." Once more he held out the bouquet weakly, "I know I kinda vanished on you there, and while I can't really make it up to you just like that," he snapped his fingers, no mean feat for someone with both hands full, "I hope this will make up for it…even if they are a bit mangled…"

Tenten was still looking up at the once-blond in awe, it took Naruto putting the little box of dumplings in her hands to snap her out of her stupor. Her eyes darted from the box to the flowers and slowly her lips curled into a wide smile, causing Naruto's small, true smile to form. She carefully took the damaged flowers from the man, taking time to find a vase while Naruto looked around the house.

For a place that looked to be rather plain from the outside, he was surprised how lavishly it was decorated. Several different masks and sculptures adorned the entry way of what seemed to be what his father had dubbed a 'western style' house, he had to take his word for it, as they were rarely in towns long enough to notice such things. He was admiring an eye-mask that seemed to be carved from jade when Tenten reappeared and motioned for him to follow her.

"Come on Naruto, I want to hear everything! Where have you been? What happened to you, and what the heck happened three years ago?" Naruto sighed as the seemingly hyper Tenten could hardly walk without a slight skip as they moved into the living room of her house. Again he was surprised, this place had every luxury that you could really ask for, yet despite that Tenten seemed to prefer to keep things simple. He had met her parents many times over the years and them, like her, didn't seem like the type to really go for all this. Tenten seemed to notice his look before snapping her fingers before him, "Hey! Pay attention! All this stuff is from friends of my folks, now spill buster."

Naruto ran a hand through his hair, something that seemed to draw Tenten's eyes again as her hand seemed to twitch, he bit back a laugh at that, she would not be the first that wanted to touch his hair, it was a bit odd after all. He leaned back heavily into the back of the couch, the act making the furniture groan in protest to his weight. "Tenten…I know you want answers…but I need to know, if I tell you this, will it stay between us? I need you to promise…I want you to know more than anyone, you're my first and best friend…I don't think I could handle it if you-"

Naruto winced as he bit his tongue, the jar to the back of his head had been non-to-gentle. "Naruto, you're an idiot." His eyes narrowed at the brunette dangerously but didn't seem to faze her. "I've known you almost all my life. What makes you think that I would turn on you now?"

His scowl vanished faster than it had formed as he cast a nervous glance to the young woman, "I know…It's just…this is pretty big. Only you, my dad, the Hokage and those that helped me train know. I just have to know…"

She let out a huff of annoyance before shrugging, "What am I going to do with you…dumb blond…" she ignored his indignant 'Hey!' before continuing, "Naruto, I promise, what you say here won't leave this room."

He gave her another small smile as she sprang up and ran to the kitchen, mumbling something about being a bad host, giving the teen a chance to collect his thoughts. After a few moments he decided it was best to err on the side of caution and reached out with his senses. He didn't smell any strangers, could only hear Tenten messing with something in the other room, couldn't sense any chakra sources close to them. Still wishing to be thorough he reached into a hip pouch and pulled out a bit of parchment with an odd array of symbols on it, some kanji, others the runes that adorned his armor. He focused for a moment before letting chakra flow into the paper and dropped it onto the ground as Tenten reentered the room. Almost as soon as the tag landed on the floor a blue aura swept through the room, muting and yet also concentrating the sound. The blond cursed to himself, he would have to brush up on those seals, seemed he had been off a bit, the sound shouldn't focus like that…

Though such a seal could have its uses…

"What did you do?"

Naruto looked up at the now stern, tray laden Tenten before gesturing to the tag, "Privacy seal, never pays to be safe." She nodded before pouring some tea for Naruto who looked at it with slight annoyance, it wasn't that he didn't like tea; it's just that he hadn't had any in a few years…

"Now then, no more stalling, talk, and it better be good if I'm going to forgive you for up and poofing away like that!"

Naruto smirked at the bun haired girl, "'Poofed?'"

She narrowed her eyes playfully in return before swatting his arm, and immediately regretted it when the dull 'thang' of bone on metal rang through the room. Biting back a yelp she shook out her injured fingers as she glared daggers at the now laughing man beside her. "And tell me why you're apparently ready for the fourth shinobi war!"

He held up his hands in defense before reaching for his tea, "Alright, alright. I guess we should start with what happened when we brought in Anko…" Tenten's playfulness seemed to evaporate faster than the dumplings had, something he noticed hadn't returned with her from the kitchen, "Do you remember, back during that party when I was seven, that Anko was given a necklace?"

Tenten reached back in her memories and recalled that it was that day that that odd tooth necklace had appeared around her neck, "Ya, that charm thing, right?"

The young man nodded as he sipped from his cup, and had to fight the urge not to gag, he didn't know if it was his new senses, or if Tenten was just bad at making tea, but he knew he would have to find a way to get rid of this. "Yes, that necklace was something father gave her, he told her that day, if she were in trouble, he could find her. He wasn't lying." The brunette arched an eyebrow at that before leaning toward Naruto a bit, "Dad did something to that necklace, a long time ago. He put a kind of, well I guess you could call it a summoning seal on it. If there was a condition set for the runes, it would trigger, and summon him to her. At the time I was unconscious from training, so I ended up hitching a ride when he was called."

"What happened to her?"

Naruto's grip tightened alarmingly on the small cup, a light 'ting' of cracking glaze being all the warning he had, it was still enough and he put the cup down quickly in fear of destroying it, as he pulled back Tenten could see his fingers shaking slightly as his odd eyes burned in anger.

"Orochimaru happened…He…he DID things to her…experiments…" He was staring blankly at the far wall's television screen, noticing for the first time his reflection, seeing how much larger he was compared to the woman next to him before his eyes turned to the floor as he drew a steadying breath, "As far as we were able to tell…it seems he was trying to come up with some kind of new seal…something that he could use to gain more power…trying to create bloodlines or something…"

Tenten was a little surprised when he reached into a hip pouch and pulled out a large…horn? A large spiral shaped thing that had more of the same carvings on it his armor held, he ran a finger across one as his hand sunk slowly, as if it was suddenly filled and took a moment to tilt it up, letting the mysterious brew pour down his throat before scrubbing a gloved hand across his mouth. He offered the horn to Tenten who took it gingerly and just seemed to hold it, "Apparently, he had put one of these seals on Anko, a prototype, according to dad, something unstable…but we weren't sure if it was going to be something that would stay, or burn off on its own, we knew so little about the damned things…Anyway, you know what Anko was like when we got to the hospital…the seal had, done something, locked away part of her memory, that and the pain she was in…it was unbearable. When she…reacted like that to us…to me…we left. We had to find that bastard's lab and see what we could do to fix this. Really, I don't think anyone was shocked more at his betrayal than the old man, but even dad was shaken. They had fought together a lot in the past, they were friends…so why would he do this…hurt so many. Tenten…what we found in that…place. I-I can't even begin to describe, it was horrible, people, kids, animals, plants, he was…messing with them all."

Tenten was looking more than a little green at the idea of what could be in there, she had known some of the things Naruto had been through when they were young, the starving, the beatings…if it was that bad…She took a long draw from the horn and coughed hard, spilling a bit of the brew. She didn't know what that stuff was; all she knew was that it was STRONG, strong, but good. After a moment of clearing her throat she passed the horn back to Naruto who took a draw as well, "That lab…things had been…crossed with each other, I won't go into it, I got sick when I saw it…I don't think I've ever seen dad look so pissed...We found some of his notes, according to him Orochimaru's method for generating these bloodlines was to try and seal different things into a person, have that thing mix it's chakra or even split its soul into you somehow. It's way beyond anything I've ever seen, but while I was training dad was working on it, he thinks he found a way to at least help with the pain…"

Another pass of the horn between the two went around before the vessel was finally empty, Naruto blinked a bit at that, he was pretty sure he hadn't drank that much…"When we saw everything that he had been doing there…and he hadn't even been in this place to long from the looks of it, I decided, I needed to get stronger, even more than what father was doing for me. So we left, no more time spent traveling to the towns for letters, or visits…I know you must hate me…but the thought of that bastard doing that to her…or to anyone else…I just couldn't…"

Tenten placed a gentle hand on his fur clad shoulder before trying to give it a squeeze, she only felt the metal covering his body, but she was sure the gesture was received as he gave her a small smile. "Anyway…now for the big things I guess. Tenten, what do you know about the Kyuubi?"

"Only that my parents were killed in the attack…other than that it's what everyone knows, the Fourth sacrificed himself to kill it when it attacked our village."

"That's…only half right…It did attack us…but none of us know why, not the old man, not my father, no one, not even the Fourth…That, and it didn't die…" He winced slightly as Tenten took in a sharp breath, the idea of that monster still out there… "You're wrong…it's not out there, the Fourth sealed it, he sacrificed his soul to do it, because of his actions…he can never go to heaven or hell…he's trapped, in the shinigami's stomach…" He chanced a glance to the girl beside him to see she had paled considerably, the normal off-tan a ghost white at the thought. "Tenten, unlike with weapons…or even this horn, the Kyuubi couldn't be put in a scroll or anything like it, it was just too strong. They had to use a person and not just any person…"

Tenten felt her whole body start to tremble…it was all starting to make a perverted kind of sense…the way he hid on his birthday, the way people treated him, how no one ever even thought to look his way at the orphanage, the way they would keep the other kids from playing with him.

Naruto held the Kyuubi.

Noticing the utter shock on her face she sighed as he leaned back once more into the sofa's cushions, while he couldn't feel the softness through the armor, it was still rather nice to feel something other than hard stone or the somehow harder frozen ground. "I had a feeling I wouldn't have to say it…you always were the smart one." His mirthless chuckle seemed to jar her from her revere, she leaned into his side slightly as his eyes looked on, utterly lacking in focus. "That leads me to these changes…in a way."

Alarmed chocolate eyes looked up into what looked like eyes that held a bloodied sea, "The fox changed you!? It did this!"

Naruto gave a half shrug, "After the fact…I was the one that wanted it at first, and the fox is a 'he', a really arrogant thing too…ass…"

"Then…what…"

Naruto let out a heavy sigh as he pulled aside the large fur once more, for the first time allowing Tenten to see his armor properly, the whole of the suite seemed to be made of banded strips of finely crafted black steel, the outer rim of each strip possessed the bright red runes that seemed to be all over his equipment, at the joints she spotted far finer bands as well as a kind of mesh not unlike the fishnet so many ninja bore, though this was far finer, almost like it was woven rather than forged. At his hip she spotted a few leather pouches, it was from one of these that he pulled what looked to be a senbon needle, but unlike any she had seen before. This needle seemed to be a brilliant sky blue and looked to be almost transparent in places.

"This was the first part…my dad is pretty far from normal, as you know, and not because of his attitude…dad's body is…special, a lot of things were done to him when he was younger, not unlike what had happened to Anko, the difference is, dad wanted it. That, and they had a lot of practice doing it. Anyway…one of things that happens with dad, when he's cut, the blood that comes out almost immediately hardens, keeping him from losing too much blood…the fox seemed to like that, but didn't want me bleeding to do it."

"So…wait, Drakus can't die!"

Naruto gave a half shrug, "I really don't know, but let me put it this way, after what I've seen him fight, if there is something out there that can kill him, I never want to meet it…I've only heard stories about people that could wrestle a bear, until he did it as part of our training, snapped its neck clean. Hell, I had to deal with the wolves…" He absently ran a finger over the knife at his belt.

Tenten felt that familiar tremor run through her body once more, she knew he was strong, but how do you kill something that can't bleed? "The fox…he tried to copy the ability, like I said, but instead of my blood, it gave me the ability to, well, make my chakra a solid. It takes a lot out of me, and it takes time to concentrate it enough…but it works. My body will make a shell over a wound with this stuff when I get cut or stabbed or the like, but it will really weaken me. It's taking a lot of time, but I'm slowly learning to control it. The fox, near as we can figure, was close enough during the attack on the village to understand how it works, and put it in me when I received my birthday present last year…"

"Wait…what?"

He gave another hollow laugh as he reached over and put the needle in her hand, pulling it into his own as he seemed to focus on them, seeming to draw comfort from the act. For Tenten, this was new, they'd always palled around, been physical with piggy back rides and the like, but never like this. She fought back the blush that was threatening to spread through the whole of her body as he continued to talk, the crystal shard helped he focus, it's smooth-yet-irregular, cool surface a nice distraction from his almost too warm hands. "After what happened to Anko, I told dad that I didn't want any more birthday presents, I told him I wanted to save them up, for when I earned my name." At her questioning look he let out a sigh, he tended to forget that not everyone was like his family. "Ya, you heard me right, when dad first adopted me, he never used my name, said that where he was from you had to earn your name, to become a man. That's when I got this pelt."

Tenten seemed to get more than a little excited at the sound of that, "I know you said you killed it, but how! It's even bigger than you are!"

Naruto nodded and smirked as he ran a hand over the soft fur, his eyes unfocused as he drifted in the memory. "It wasn't easy, I'll tell you that. All I had was my knife and a tunic, and not dad's knife…one they gave me at The Fang. Their final test of an Aspirant…but I'm jumping ahead. When I turned sixteen, I finally told him that I was ready, he asked what I wanted…" He let out a heavy breath, "I asked to be like him."

Tenten had to bite back a giggle at the request, it figured that a boy wanted to be like his father, "So, what? He helped you kill the wolf and that's that?"

His eyes narrowed slightly, making the teen bite her tongue, he looked like she just insulted him on some level she couldn't begin to understand. "I told you, I killed the wolf. As to what I wanted. You know my dad is hardly normal. That isn't like he always was…he used to fight for a very special group, they called it a Chapter, a Brotherhood, like priests or something, apparently dad was one of their better ones. While he didn't earn the right of Lordship, he was one of their priests…when you become one of them, TO become like one of them; you drink from a special cup. The cup was said to be the one their Farther used. Like their god, or one of them, it was a bit confusing, and the memories are fuzzy…The cup…whatever it does…it changes you."

Tenten didn't know why, but she felt a chill run up her spine, the haunted look he wore, the hushed, subdued tones, it was just too creepy. "Changed you how?"

Naruto refilled the drinking horn and took another draw before holding it between his hands. "I met some of the other Aperients…they were all older than me, stronger than me by leaps, but the way we were together, it's like we really were brothers. I grew up hearing stories about this place that I was in now…the great gates that the lucky chosen would pass through to begin their new lives. Apparently they all knew the same, they told us stories, that when you drank you would be judged by their Father Russ himself, the one that made them all, that if you were unworthy that you would be struck down…I saw a few look more than a little nervous, but I remembered what it was like with Anko-chan…what it would be like if Lee or the old man were treated like that…what it would be like if you had _that_ done to you." He took another long pull from his drink, thankful that his body processed the alcohol so quickly, otherwise he would have been well on his way to three sheets past the wind by now.

"I was the first to step up, took the massive cup, I swear it was as big as my chest was then, and took my drink, draining it in one go…and almost passed out then and there, I swear they never laughed harder than when I fell to my knees coughing. A few thought I was already dead and were worried about their own chances…but then I climbed back to my feet and gave the cup back to the high priest and went to the other side of the alter to await the others, standing proudly, I was the one with the most courage, the first to take the test, to become like the others. You never saw a prouder group, it had looked like we had all passed, but even as we were being lead to our rooms…things began to change. I stepped into the room, it was hard to see by then…and fell on the cold, stone slab in the center of the room. I don't know how long I was out…those days were all a blur…all I remember was waking up sometimes, the doors opening into a room with something in it for us to eat, fresh kills all still raw, where we would all fight for the meat…for the blood…they didn't give us water, so we took what we could get. The fights would sometimes get too wild, breaking noses and bones of the others for the chance at a bit of meat…you could feel something gnawing at the back of your mind, trying to get you to give in and become something…less than human."

The young woman beside him was fighting the urge to move away from the man before her, could all this have been real? Or was it some kind of a fever dream he had to endure under his crazed father's tutelage? "Y-You would just…eat animals like that?"

He gave a mirthless laugh as he fought the urge to drool, the meat had been so…wonderful, "Tenten, you have no idea how hungry we were…how much we changed. I remember when we had…settled down I guess you can say, looking at some of the guys that had passed the gates with me…I was still the smallest, they were at least as big as dad then…and we had lost four…One I know what happened, one of the others had taken a leg bone while we ate and beat one of the others, caved his head right in…the thing is, I saw the hit, it didn't look like he had hit him that hard…he was one of the others that were gone. I remember having all kinds of strange dreams while all this was going on, I saw horrible things…myself willing to do almost anything to be with a woman more beautiful than anything I could ever even imagine…"

Tenten suddenly felt the urge to brain the man beside her but resisted when she saw him almost trembling in fear at the memory, wasn't it just a perverted dream? They all had them, it wasn't that strange a thing, she even had a few about the Hygua boy in her class, they were dreams, you couldn't be held responsible for them, and told him as much. "Heh…Tenten…this was more real than anything you could imagine…s-she looked kinda like you…but older…different, twisted…she…" He mumbled the last so low she could hardly hear it over the sound of her own beating heart, he had a naughty dream about HER!? However, his words that drifted to her distracted mind killed anything she was about to think of, "she…told me to do things…if I wanted to be with her, I had to-to…"

"What?"

"She told me to kill Tenten, but not just kill…to torture…humiliate…to do so many…_things_ to all of you…all my friends, to Ino, Sakura….Ayame, Anko…just so that she would touch me again…and you don't…you can't understand how hard it was Tenten…I wanted to…wanted to so _badly_, just to have her close to me…" The sharp, coppery taste of blood filled Tenten's mouth as she bit her lip at the thought of it, a nightmare like that…if she had one like that about Negi…or Naruto...

A shaky smile took over his lips as he turned warm eyes on her, "But you know…I didn't do it, I couldn't, I know you would NEVER ask me to do anything like that…you saved me Tenten-chan." He leaned slightly into her for a moment, a kind of hug, as right now he was gripping the horn so tightly that she thought it would break. He took a steadying breath before drinking from the horn again, passing it to Tenten once more before he continued. "Dad told me later…the dreams…they weren't dreams…they were_ things_, things that dad and those at the Fang helped fight against, that there are four of these…Powers, that can corrupt men and women, and they were the ones sent out to deal with them, and other monsters. They were heroes, all of them, and I was blessed to be allowed to be counted among their number. At first, they thought something was wrong with me, that I would have to be…to be put down, like an animal…apparently that happened to those that gave into the visions, or would let the beast take over…they showed us pictures of these…horrible monsters that you would become, half man and half wolf, they called them wolfen…and told us it was something that we would all have to fight against for the rest of our days."

"It was then that we underwent our last trials…they knocked us all out…took us out into that frozen hell…and left us. Our trial was that we had to live…to find out way back…I don't know how far it was…all I knew was that the mountain that we had been in looked so small…it took me four days to find anything to eat…and with the changes I had been through I needed a lot…a whole lot of food…they told me later that I had the blessing of the All Father, their high God, be as lucky as I was…getting attacked by this wolf. It had to be sick…that or a true gift…"

"The winds were so high that I couldn't smell anything…and it was dumb luck that he didn't smell me first. We were both shocked to see each other as we came over the ridge at the same time. I panicked and threw my knife,' he let out a bark of laughter at the memory, 'dumbest mistake I could have ever made. It hit the wolf in the shoulder, and pissed it off. He came at me hard and I knew there was no running, so I dodged as best I could, and got a claw across the shoulder for my trouble. So there I am, bleeding all over, leaving a scent for miles for his friends to find, and the wolf hardly even hobbled. It came at me again and I tried to roll with it as it bowled me over, I managed to get a foot under him and kick up to send him flying…damned thing landed on the knife weird and it messed up its leg. As it was trying to stand I tackled it, managed to get a hand on my knife and pulled it free…started stabbing it as hard as I could while I was on its back. It was losing a lot of blood, but that just made it fight harder, it got ahold of my arm and broke it in three places, damn near tore it off…"

"While it tried to pull off my arm I managed to get my knife into its neck…and that was that, after a few more throws it stopped kicking and I was able to eat…It didn't give me enough meat to last me though, but it was enough to make sure I didn't have to hunt again for a few days, and with everything I got from him that day, I was lucky…a blizzard blew in about a week later, and if I didn't have the pelt I would have died, if I didn't have a the water sacks I made from him I'm sure I would have died of thirst…like they said, I was blessed. I was still the last to get back, dad almost gave up hope, in the end of the eleven of us only seven were left, including me, it was so hard, realizing that the men you had been though hell with so far were just gone…lost to the mountain…"

Naruto chanced a look to Tenten and saw her looking a little…annoyed? "Naruto, why didn't you use any jutsu?"

His deep, rumbling laughter was her answer for a moment, before it seemed to break free of him into peals or uproarious laughter. It took him a few, long moments to get himself under control again, only to almost be set off again at her pout, "Tenten…jutsu was never an option, when I made that request three years ago, dad put a seal on me, it almost completely sealed off my chakra, almost so much it would kill me…to make it so I wouldn't ever rely on it. Everything I did out there Tenten, it was all me, nothing more. I don't think Lee could have done what I've managed to do…"

Tenten's jaw was slack in awe…he survived that kind of hell…without chakra!? Without the lifeblood of a ninja! "But…HOW!?"

He gave a half shrug, "I trained. Harder than you can image, between it, and the cup, I became what you see now…for the most part…"

"Most part?"

"Ya…Tenten…when I got back to the Fang…I learned that something had gone wrong with me…a mutation…something they didn't think to look for when they checked us…it was so close to a wolf already they didn't think to look for it…but when I got back and they saw my hair…they thought something was wrong and looked again. You see, that change all the others went through…what my dad went through…I didn't, not properly at least…while they had wolf blood in them, I had fox." He fought the urge to flinch at her sharp inhale of breath before he pushed through, "That's why I'm not as big as the others, not as strong. However, I'm much faster, more flexible, more agile, they hadn't seen anything like it, but my dad and I knew…knew that something more was at work…"

"The Kyuubi…"

"Ya…apparently it was when I was going through the changes that he made his move, I was changing already, so he only have to make a few subtle tweaks…it took the opportunity to alter my chakra coils, I don't think it knew that the seal dad put on me was something that could be removed, so he was taking steps so that I could still be a 'good host' to him, and made a lot of me like dad…when the others saw what had happened they studied me for a while, it took all the influence my dad had to keep them from killing me outright, they couldn't let a mutation…a corruption…have something as important as their gifts flowing through my veins. Thankfully, because I was so close to them, because I didn't seem to be changed and was still…well, me. They said they wouldn't kill me, but they told us we couldn't stay any longer. That night there was a feast, and while it was a bit subdued, I was still able to say my goodbyes, I'd been living with these people for nine months, it was the longest we had ever stayed in one place…I still miss them, and wonder how their doing out there, wherever they're fighting…hopefully one day I'll get to see them again…"

Tenten reached over and gave a comforting squeeze of his knee, "I'm sure you will Naruto…"

He smiled a little as he looked at the bun-haired teen, "I hope so, they were my Brothers…but I don't think I could stay there…I wouldn't be able to see any of you again if I did."

Tenten felt the blush try and crawl across her cheeks once more but fought it tooth and nail. "I'm glad…we would have missed you Naruto-kun."

Naruto took the moment to rest a hand on hers for a moment, but before the duo could say more there was an odd crackle in the air as Naruto quickly jerked his fore and middle fingers to his ear and pressed on a bit of metal on his ear that had been hidden by his hair.

"Wolf to Fang."

"Black Fang here."

"Move with all haste to my position…we have a problem here…"


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer – See chapter one, I mean really, if I owned any of this (Aside from Drakus) would I really be living in a basement…Though I must add that any other characters I may reference this time around are C their owners, in this case Fantasy Flight Games

A/N: don't know why, this chapter took a while for me, mainly because I had two real options here. On one hand I wanted to just jump into the issues at hand, primarily dealing with Anko, but I also really wanted to do things from Ayame's point of view, showing her spying on the whole of the situation. However, I really want to get into it, show a bit of what I really want to do with the fic, so I'm just going to dive in and hope the bottom isn't shallow…

In the end, when it came to Naruto's affinities, I ended up breaking down and rolling dice for it, came up Fire and Lightning, should prove interesting when the combo comes to bare.

I also had someone ask about the Wolfen, if they were werewolves, and for a lack of a better term (Aside from those mentioned) they are. In this case of Warhammer, the Wolves when they are inducted are given a connection called the Canis Helix, altering the warrior on the genetic level to make them more bestial. The problem is, if they give in, or are more genetically attuned to the nature as it is, they will change, and then there is no turning back, all they can do is either A) Kill in the individual, or, in the case of them turning in the final trial, B) they are left to wonder the wastes, searching for prey that, more often than not, are the other aspirants. Not a kind fate.

Sorry about all the re-ups, keep finding things that need fixing...

* * *

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 11

* * *

The heavy sounds of footfalls echoed through the thick forest, all stealth forgotten in his haste. He had received the call, and he would be damned if he wasn't going to heed it.

He and his father had seen many things in their travels. The great deserts of Wind. The eternal mists of their namesake. The sky cities of Lightning…but in all that time, never had his father said 'We have a problem here'

It chilled him.

And yet, at the same time it got his blood boiling. If this was something his father couldn't handle on his own, if it was something he had to call him for, then it had to be big, and he was hoping it was a fight.

He should be careful what he wished for.

Naruto and Tenten skidded to a halt in the small clearing, what greeted the duo was something that was just about the last thing they expected to see.

There Drakus and Konan stood, between the pair was Anko, currently seeming to be unconscious at the heart of a massive array of runes and seals. The whole of the structure was made into a large delta, at the intersection lay Anko, who looked to be curled into a tight ball while Drakus couched over her, wiping sweat from her brow even as he continued to work. Konan was leaning over the prone woman, currently keeping a sharp eye on her neck as if looking for something.

"Dad, what happened?"

Drakus glanced to his son before scowling as the finely tipped dagger from his forearm was making small cuts in Anko's shoulder. They would all heal up just fine, but he knew that every small cut was hurting her, whether she was awake or not.

"Naruto, I never said to bring anyone."

The boy flinched slightly as Tenten stepped forward. "It's not his fault, we were talking when he got the call, what's happening? What are you doing to Anko!"

The trio could hear his teeth grind from across the clearing, "What I have to do."

Drakus finished the last of the markings on Anko's shoulder before rising slowly and moving into the center of the arrays on another point, Konan moving into the last one and looking to the larger man expectantly. "Naruto, get in the seal with Konan and we will get started. You know I was making a seal that could help with the pain, but now that I've had some time to really look at it, I think I understand what is wrong with her. That accursed snake sealed something into Anko, but it's too strong and destabilized the seal. More so, I think whatever is in there is something that knows I can deal with it, so it is lashing out every time I get close. When it starts, Anko's array will activate and draw it out, funneling it to me."

The bluenette and off-blond nodded, one hesitantly, the other with a stiff, military air to it. "Father, what is our task?"

He let out a heavy sigh as he stooped and double-checked his seals, "I'm not going to lie son, there's something else in there that's trying to stop anyone from tampering with the seal, but at the same time it's keeping the other…thing, at bay, keeping it from taking her over entirely, when I pull one part to me, that unknown will come to you. Naruto…" Drakus' head came up to level a glare at his son, but the boy could tell it wasn't one that held malice, or anger beyond what this task held, "No holding back. The only thing I don't want you using is your elemental manipulation. Your body hasn't stabilized yet, there's no telling what will happen if you try and use any of your techniques."

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he cursed the fox for the umpteenth time, his power had just been cut in half. He gave a reluctant nod to his father before glancing to Konan, "Dad said you were strong when we first left Rain, what can you do?"

She seemed to hesitate for a moment before letting out a tired sounding breath; this was NOT her day… "My skills are…unique, more a support role I'm afraid, I can use directed attacks, but most of my skills are to disable and hinder."

"Element?"

"…Paper…"

"Paper?"

She gave a slight nod before pulling the flower from her hair and, much to Naruto and Tenten's surprise, the flower seemingly on its own became a paper airplane, then a butterfly, then a small fox that gave a noiseless nip before returning to its original shape. "Explanations can wait. Rest assured, if you fight in close, then I can handle the range. You?"

"As you know, melee combat is more forte', and with the restriction on my elemental techniques I'm limited to mid to close range combat. Weapons, Taijutsu, limited crystal manipulations." She gave a curt nod, quickly coming up potential attacks she could use.

"Um…Drakus-san? What do you want me to do?"

The trio looked to Tenten with varying looks, one of slight sadness, one of confusion and one with an appraising eye. "Tenten, I'm sorry to say that you can't help us. You simply lack the training you will need for what we will likely face. Don't think that I believe you are weak. The fact of the matter is, you don't have the experience needed for this fight. Keep an eye out, I think you can learn something."

Naruto cringed a bit at the look the bun-haired girl sent his father, he had a bad feeling he was going to be getting a chakra enhanced foot to the ass in the future, but for now he had a feeling that things were going to get nasty. As his father went through his last checklist Naruto adjusted his gloves, idling turning the rings that encased every middle of his fingers. He arched an eyebrow at the field of paper that that quickly surrounded Konan even as more condensed into a pair of swords. Drakus' hand slipped to the small of his back where a dull flash filled the clearing, his hand came back holding the halberd and gave a few swings to limber up his muscles.

"Ready?"

The pair nodded and Drakus thrust the weapon into the hard earth before crossing both hands over the spiked counterbalance and closing his eyes. Slowly the winds around him seemed to pick up and soon the whole of the clearing was obscured by a whirlwind, shielding the five of them from prying eyes. Keeping one hand over the weapon's haft he reaches once more behind his back where he pulls a small book and quickly opened it to his desired page before chakra began to cycle through the pages, sending more power into the seals.

"Anko Mitarashi, daughter of Konoha, holder of the Snake Contract, former first apprentice of Orochimaru of the Sanin, bearer of the cursed seal of heaven, gifted with Tensai's Fang. This humble servant has called you to be judged before our Father, Leman Russ, before the might of the All Father, before the infinite grace of Kami, before the benevolent judgments of Yami. I, Drakus, the Grey Wolf of mankind, call forth the blasphemous forces that have infested this woman! By the authority of the Holy Orders of the Inquisition, and as a Brother-Captain of the Grey Knights, Chamber Militant of the Ordo Malleus, COME FORTH CREATURE OF THE ABYSS! COME FORTH AND BE JUDGED, AS DECREED BY HOLY WRIT!"

With every word spoken Anko seemed to convulse, every shudder accompanied with a fine mist of blood from the many small symbols that had been carved into her flesh. As the mist filled the air it seemed to be pulled forcefully into the runes that had been carved into the soil. The deeply gouged markings beginning you glow an eerie red as the power began to spread towards his array. As the last rune lit Anko's prone form seemed to be suddenly pulled upright as though by a marionette's strings, her body beginning to spasm violently as the black markings of the Heaven Seal seemed to slither along the whole of her body before they burned away, leaving once finely tanned skin the sickeningly grey pallor of the dead, a set of grotesque, almost hand shaped wings sprouting from her back, tearing the trench coat and fishnet to shreds.

The four looked on in horror as the changes continued to spread, her sandals and greaves splitting and shattering as her feet became more like a bird's talons as her fingers grew webbed and clawed. Slowly a set of solid silver, orb like eyes settled on Drakus as a massive, twisted grin formed on her once lovely features. The formerly kind, playful voice was now oddly pitched, sending a chill up Naruto and Konan's spines as it spoke.

"Ku, ku, ku, ku, ku, ku….My my…Drakus-kun, it's been such a long time…"

Drakus pulled the halberd from the earth and with practiced ease turned it to the crook of his arm, taking an almost bored stance even as his eyes hardened. "Orochimaru, quite the interesting form you have chosen."

The horrid creature seemed to float leisurely over to the edge of the array Anko had been laid in before a single claw stretched out, as soon as it hit the edge of the seals an angry red field erupted and it was forced to pull its hand back with a hiss of pain. Taking a moment to shake the now flaming digit out it looked into the other path that had yet to illuminate, "My my…and my former colleague Konan? To what do I owe the…pleasure…"

Konan had to fight the urge to vomit as the thing beyond the seal leered at her, seeming to rake its grotesque eyes across her figure. She fought the urge to rush the thing before her and could only snarl back, "We were never colleagues you sick bastard! You tried to join with Nagato to take his body for his bloodline!"

The creature seemed to slink closer to the path that lead to the duo, "Ku, ku, ku, ku…I'd almost forgotten about your little friends…how is Yahiko? I've heard the strangest of stories…"

Konan was already moving before a strong hand yanked her literally off her feet, that didn't seem to deter her any however as she continued to thrash, bite and snarl at the monster before her, much to the creature's delight.

"Ku, ku…so exquisite, the taste of suffering like this…I really must thank…well, me, for putting me here. Now then…I believe we have some business to attend to…Drakus-kun…"

Drakus' rage was so complete the fur of his pelt almost seemed to bristle for him as he passed the blade of the halberd over the array that encircled him, at once the dull red seemed to combine with the brilliant arcs of blue from the baroque weapon, the purple aura seemed to pull the thing that had been Anko towards him once more, this time however, when he met the juncture of rune line that lead between the arrays there was no flash of searing power, instead the all grey of the things body seemed to begin to withdraw from the far edges of the things body, seeming to flow like unmixed paint from her body, the changes leaving with her to start snaking its way down the path to Drakus.

Even as that taint made its way towards him Anko's body didn't stay her own, slowly she seemed to grow larger, not bulky, but certainly growing in height. Her once semi-short purple hair became long and black as midnight even as her once kind brown eyes became yellow slits.

"Ku, ku, ku, ku, ku, ku….Well well, Konan-chan, it seems as though you and I will have the chance to get…re-acquainted once more…"

Naruto felt his blood boiling at the sight of this man, gone was his friend, gone was his nee-chan. Now all that was left was the monster that had attacked her, the freak that was threatening everything he knew, everything he loved…

That was stopping right now!

Orochimaru felt the seals pulling 'him' to the last of the arrays and cursed. Konan was a threat he wasn't sure he could deal with at the moment. This wasn't his body, this form was fighting him tooth and nail with every breath he drew, and without the added power from the being he was keeping in check Anko was starting to win. Then there was the enigma of the large blond that was still holding onto the struggling bluenette. This delicious specimen of a male was something he didn't truly want to damage…but at the same time he seemed to be radiating waves of power that could not be ignored.

A sickening grin formed once more on 'his' lips as he allowed his elongated tongue to dance across his lips. This was going to be fun.

Almost as soon as the snake had stepped into the seal they were off like a shot, Konan was the first to attack, her twin swords a blue as they wove around her body, creating both a shield and a deadly storm of blades that kept the Sanin moving ducking and dodging, all the while still wearing his sickening smile.

That damned smile!

The broad, almost haymaker like swing was more than enough of an opening for the serpent-nin who sent two, lightning fast jabs into a pressure point over her heart.

One would hurt, two would cripple. It was almost dumb luck that she had called on that much paper earlier as a demonstration to Naruto, as such the blow was lessened, but she knew better than to stay in close. As she sprang back she gave a quick spin and sent the pair of paper blades towards the snake even as more sheets began to flow around her, turning quickly into kunai and shuriken before a hailstorm of missiles shot to the creature before her.

Orochimaru snapped through half a dozen hand signs so fast it seemed almost as though his hands hadn't moved at all before he breathed out a great gout of fire, turning the once deadly paper weapons into so much ash. He let out a dark chuckle that was suddenly silenced as he felt…_something_ brush past his face. He glanced slightly down to see a fine line cut across his skin and a deep crimson sliding down his cheek before several strands of hair fell away. His eyes widened as he heard a crash of trees behind him and leapt straight into the air, the tree branch he had been aiming for long gone, but his height afforded him a look. Even as the flames were still dying down he saw the silhouette of the blond standing in the center of the inferno, as though the flames wouldn't affect him, before he…swayed?

The snake Sanin had only a moment to gape in shock at what he was seeing, it looked like two dozen glittering lights were streaking through the air towards him, five quick seals and he thrusts his hands forward, "Fūton: Daitoppa!" The massive rush of wind caused the dying flames to re-kindle as the blond was forced to flee the now raging firestorm, the odd glittering whips flowing with him, leaving fine lines in the earth as he moved to a better position. He had little time to worry about the blond however as a true storm of leaflets engulfed him, each one seeming to stick to him like a second skin and knocking him back into the ruined trees and weighing him down. He hissed in anger as he clapped both hands together, "Fūton: Reppūshō" sending another wind blast into the ground, launching him once more into the air and scattering the paper. Another clap and he sent himself to the ground once more.

"Ku, ku, ku…Konan chan…you're going to need to do much, much better if you want to def-" Orochimaru quickly jagged his head to the side to avoid the black clad fist that had appeared as if from nowhere, he then ducked the spinning back elbow however he was surprised to see the axe kick coming down and was forced to roll away even as the spinning black/grey mass continued to move, forcing the ninja to keep on the move even more. He was a whirlwind of fists, feet, elbows and knees, never slowing in the slightest as he seemed to be moving in a spiral, moving faster and faster as they came to the center of the odd, whirlpool like motions where Naruto danced about him at such speeds he simply couldn't stop the blows that rained from all angles.

Naruto's smirk couldn't be seen as he assaulted the nin with speeds that even the mighty Gai would raise an eyebrow at. Just as the Sanin was starting to get his wits about him Naruto dropped low, almost between his legs, rolled forward until his arms, head and shoulders were steady on the ground then lashed out with two strong kicked, knocking the man skywards. Naruto wasn't through though, and rolling to his feet he launched himself after the Sanin, lashing out with a hurricane of kicks until the pair reached the sudden weightlessness of their apex. Dazed eyes looking into strange blues for a moment before he seemed to blur, his body spinning once more to deliver another devastating axe kick to the back of the monster that had attacked his friend.

Orochimaru could only look up though blurring vision as the blond threw both hands forward once more, the sky glittering before he felt fire dance through his body, now he understood what it was…just before he was to impact the ground he seemed to stop, hanging in the air as the monofilament wires sliced through the little clothing he had left, rending his flesh to the bone before he was yanked back up to the man above him to be met with knees and elbows before his world went black.

"Rising Dragon!"

* * *

Tenten watched with a limp jaw as Naruto literally danced around the strange form of her friend, each of those punches would put down any of the people in the academy, she knew that well enough, but together? She winced as he launched the pale figure into the air, flashes of blue lighting the pair as chakra seemed to flow with Naruto but that in of itself wasn't what caught her attention. What she was seeing should be possible, every other flash seemed to be…different…here was fire, there was what looked like a splash of water, then a strong breeze before what looked like snow, then an odd dust, a gout of hot water, what looked like mud. It was madness; it looked like every element known to man was coming from every other strike the blond was delivering.

Drakus' words suddenly made sense, Naruto's affinities hadn't yet settled, they were fighting it out in his own body, and while it looked like he was struggling to keep it in check, even she, who had yet to even try and tap into her affinities, could tell his fighting style had it incorporated into it on a fundamental level.

It was impossible for him _not _to draw on it at least a little while he was fighting. Watching the final blow seem to light the sky in a strange, blue fire her eyes widened as she saw his hands slash out and the wires lash out towards the plummeting nin and catch him, pulling him back to the attacker who hammered him once more to the earth. Naruto dropped easily to the ground as Konan moved towards the prone Sanin.

Whose color seemed to drain.

Then turned into chunks of earth that melted into the ground.

* * *

Drakus watched the slithering mass of sickly grey move across the ground before it came to a stop and seemed to pool. Slowly the mass rose before the waiting Marine, his halberd at the ready as the thing seemed to take shape.

First it was the legs, long and lean with skin the color of lightly milked coffee that lead to a perfectly curved rear that met a flared set of hips and tone stomach before creeping to a nicely shaped bust and forming a strong, yet not effeminate arms. Last was her head, a strong jaw with angular, but soft features, his hair was to the bottoms of her shoulder blades and looked to be a pale lavender. Pouty lips curled into a soft smile before her eyes snapped open, showing blood red irises that looked at the large man playfully before she took a single, graceful step towards him, only to be met with the business end of the halberd being thrust at her neck.

The pulled back slightly on bent knees, the top of the blade poised at her lips, "Now…is that any way to greet an old friend…Drakus?"

If anything, Drakus seemed even more enraged at the sight of beauty before him, "I don't know you daemon. Though I can imagine that you may know me."

She deftly sidestepped the blade and sauntered towards him, her hips swaying enticingly as her bust bobbed slightly as her hands ghosted along her body, "Come now…you know my face…my body anywhere my love…it's been such a long time…"

He growled, the act stopping the woman in her tracks, still a few paces from him, "There is a good reason for that…Hel died, a long, long time ago."

The woman's eyes widened before the spike on the spine of the halberd's blade slammed into her temple, making the woman go limp and hang from the blade, blood trickling from her lips before Drakus planted an iron boot on her chest and pushed her off. "Come forth Daemon! No my games, no more glamour! Your tricks would break like waves on the shore for even one that is untrained. How could you be so foolish as to believe that the Grey Wolf would fall to such a petty trick!"

The ground seemed to shift a fraction of a second before a massive, finely spiked crab like black claw lashed out, but a fraction of a second was more than he needed to be put in motion, rolling to his right as a second claw lashed out, putting a shallow cut along the bridge of his nose. As Drakus rose to his feet he let out a sharp snort, dislodging the already hardened blood from his nose before he turned fully to face the creature that seemed to be brushing the dirt from its body. It had a body of a woman, a rather well endowed one at that, and comely features that could keep most men staring for hours, but that is where the similarities with a normal woman vanished.

Its deep purple hair seemed to flow about it of its own accord as a two-toed, almost lizard like food seemed to flex, digging gouges in the hardened earth as easily as sand. The odd click now and again of the massive claws snapping shut time and again echoing through the small clearing as it pulled one up to its lips, lapping at the already hardened blood, blood that seemed to smoke before vanishing from its claws. Those same, silver eyes staring into his yellowed ones as it slowly circled him.

"Aww…poor baby…did the big, bad man's little girlfriend die…That's too bad…"

If anything, Drakus's features seemed to calm, much to the creature's surprise, "Indeed it was. If she had still been alive I'm sure she would have enjoyed ripping those arms of yours off at the root." He let out a mirthless laugh as he slowly began to spin the halberd, "By Russ…that woman was a handful, but then again…I never was one to be attracted to the normal women. Now then…what's your next move? You know as well as I that simply one of your kind will never be a match for one of the Ordo Malleus."

The daemon let out a titter of laughter, the sound sweet to his ears as she moved behind a tree, "My dear boy..who said I was alone?"

Drakus's eyes widened as another set of claws tore through the earth even as the first's came through the tree as simply as air, the already spinning halberd batting them aside as he sprang back, only to be knocked forward onto the earth as another large crab-claw smashed into his neck, only the hidden gorget of his armor saving him for having his head hewn clean off as the three circled him, their laughter mocking as they took the opportunity to stand on his arms, keeping that weapon from coming back to slash at them.

"Well, well, well…look what we found…such a big…strong…man…what should we do with him…I wonder…"

With a grunt he looked up at the three creatures, their claws poised to start carving, "What…no torture…"

The trio let out a giggle before one leaned in close, "Oh…don't worry…there will be plenty of time for that…when we drag your soul to our Lord…there will be so much time…it will be simply," She ran a long, barbed tongue along his cheek, "delicious…"

"I'm sure it would be…" The trio's eyes widen in surprise as a pale blue aura engulfed him before it spread through the ground, settling into a circle around each of them, "If you can manage it!" a massive explosion of electricity rocked the area as the three circles erupted in a fountain of stone, knocking the daemons skyward. Three claws lashed out to grab onto tree branches as the dust settled, to show the standing Marine brushing debris from his fur.

"That was your only chance…"

* * *

Konan cursed as she dodged strike after strike from the straight blade that Orochimaru brought to bear, cursing her lack of training in the field as the shield of paper managed to turn aside another strike. Part of her wondered where Naruto had vanished to only to have to leap into the air as a passive snake tore up the area that the two were once standing in, currently standing inside it's razor filled mouth was Naruto, standing tall and keeping the snake from swallowing him whole. Making a few grand movements she called up several solid walls of paper, forcing the Sanin to dodge around them less he be launched into the air from their sudden thrust. The pale ninja quickly leapt back but before he could come at her again each of the small barriers shifted. Forming half a dozen paper tigers that crouched low before pouncing that the surprised nin.

'She couldn't do that last time…'

Naruto cursed, not for the first time, as the snake tried once again to bite down, he couldn't bring his wires to bear while holding open the mouth, and the thrashing and jarring that the snake kept doing was starting to make him buckle.

Time to take steps.

Naruto shunted chakra along his arms, making sure to keep the elemental chakra at bay before forcing it into his bracers. At once the deep purple metal glowed before it settled into a strange glyph.

A green scorpion.

The energy settled into the pair of claws and with a dull green pulse a pair of long, serrated crystal blades flashed into existence, a larger shell of the almost jade crystal forming along his forearms up to his elbow. He smirked as the snake let out a hissing-screech from the blades that were now impaled into its gums before slinging him violently away, Naruto bouncing along the ground before striking a tree hard. Not for the first time he thanked his armor for shielding him from the bone shattering impact. He watched the snake thrashing about in pain before it landed hard, a sickening green sweeping through its once purple scales as the venoms from the bracers took effect.

By Russ he loved these bracers.

He'd have to thank his dad again.

Orochimaru had just finished slicing through the last of the tigers when he saw his snake fall, his eyes wide in shock as the snake was not dispelled.

It was dead, and Manda was going to be pissed.

He saw Naruto sling the blood from the strange, stone blades as he stalked closer, a vicious grin on his face, "Orochi-teme…I think it's time we stop playing around…" The snake Sanin took an involuntary step back as a shifting chakra aura wrapped around him, the glow slipping through a rainbow of colors before it finally settled into a pale blue glow, like the legends of fox-fire he seemed to almost hover closer to him. He saw his feet moving, but it seemed like he was covering the distance much quicker than he should be. All the warning Orochimaru had was the slightly widening grin as he took off like a shot, the right blade pulled back to strike as the left was lower, ready to parry any blow that may come at him.

The Sanin swayed and shifted, dodging strike after strike, he was no fool, he had seen what had happened to the snake, and there was no way he was going to risk those toxins when he could avoid it. The aura flared as Orochimaru dropped low to sweep his feet out from under him only to see three needle-like shards of pale blue crystal fly from his hip pouch, almost as though they were acting on their own, before they shot out and pierced his leg, two in his knee and one through the calf. The blow landed, but now the Sanin couldn't bend his leg, and in the heat of battle he couldn't get a hand on them before the claws were coming at him again. He managed to roll out of the path of the strike but to his surprise, he felt his legs become wrapped up in wire.

His eyes widened as he looked to the senbon needles to see three of the monofilaments coming from the crystals, a dull glow of chakra showing their connection. He let out a hiss of anger as he looked up to see Naruto walking calmly towards him once more, but this time there looked to be…wings coming from behind him? He saw what looked to be seventeen glowing lines framing the boys back as his arms are crossed before his chest. Each of the wires held what looked to be an odd kunai, each of the blades was thinner, flatter, shaped like a spade rather than the normal diamond of a standard kunai, but worse yet for the struggling Sanin was that spaced along the wires were smaller barbed blades, each of the wires swaying and moving about seemingly on their own.

Orochimaru knew better, these wires were almost supercharged with chakra, making each of the weapons an extension of his will. Cursing his luck he kawarimied with one of the severed branches before doing it again with another mud clone, not trusting that he wouldn't be found again so quickly. The snake master quickly pulled the senbon from his leg and tossed them aside, each of them bore the signature of the blonds' own chakra and could be used to track him. He watched the pair dealing with another of his mud clones before he felt a sickening pain shoot through his body, starting at his heart.

"No…you can't! I won't let you!!"

The pair froze as they rammed their blades through the clone, the roar of pain that filled the air was chilling, it was a sound that chilled Konan to the bone and made Naruto grin savagely before dashing off, another pulse of green making the blades vanish back into the bracers as the wires became a whirlwind around his body, shredding the foliage as he moved to the sound of suffering.

He wasn't expecting what he came upon.

* * *

Drakus smirked as he heard Orochimaru scream, the sound of a last gasp before one was forced to accept their deaths, he gave another twist of his blade as he pulled it free with a sickening sucking as the flesh tried to hold to the blade, the wet, gaping hole only lasting a moment before the body of one of the daemons erupted in purple flames and vanished into nothing. The last of the three coming at him faster than even he could see, its claws pulled back for the thrust.

Good thing he didn't rely on sight to defend himself.

The pale blue aura that surrounded him seemed to lash out, pulling his limb and putting the halberd into the path of the blow, he gave a sharp turn of his wrist, whindmilling the haft and sending the daemon head over heels and skidding through the earth. The warrior was standing before the prone creature before it could even begin to rise to its feet and planted his foot into its ribs, rolling the creature over, but even as his weapon was coming down into the beast he froze. A cold shudder running through his form, there, looking up at him through tear-streaked eyes, was a young woman. Her strawberry blond hair marred with blood, her to-pale face looking up at him with confusion as blood poured through a gaping hole in her chest, the empty cavern that once held her heart still stunk of smoke as a shaking hand reached towards him.

"B-brother?"

Yellow eyes became solid, glowing blue as Drakus let out a roar that seemed to shake the very earth, arcs of pale lightning lashing out to gouge great trenches through the earth, leaving glass and molten stone in their wake as his hand blurred, catching the young woman by the neck and pulling her to his height. The look of shock on the girl's face only made his anger greater as the fire in his eyes flared and coalesced into a halo around his head, the power forming several large spears of pure energy.

"Filth of the warp…you DARE to try THIS against ME!" The first of the spears lashed out and went through one of her hands, instantly turning it back to the black, chitinous claw as the girl wailed in pain, "No hex can overcome me!" Another spear took her other hand, "No falsehood can confound me!" Another set of spears took both feet, now holding the creature aloft in the air, "No malevolent spirit will oppose me, no creation of sin shall survive! No spawn of misrule can avoid me; all are banished to the Void!" With a spinning flourish he took the creature's head clean off, a fountain of black ichors before he caught the head by its hair, "For I am mankind's divine blade. Me and mine shall always stand against you." The clean edges of the cut began to light in flames as the eyes still looked at him with cruel intelligence, he brought the daemons head closer so that it could see the defiance in his eyes.

"And we shall know no fear…" He tossed the head into the air before the last three spears lashed out to obliterate the head. He slung the halberd clean before slipping it under his cloak once more and moving towards the path that would lead to Anko.

Drakus had only taken a dozen steps before the world seemed to shimmer with power, the air itself seemed to condense as the world around it began to split as a large, black bladed sword split the sky. The Marine ground his teeth as his hand delved back into his cloak before a voice echoed through the woods.

"Peace, Drakus of the Eternal Planes…I mean you no harm…"

* * *

A/N: And end! I know…I'm a bastage…It won't take long for the next chapter thankfully, this one just happened to fall when I had a whole lot of stuff to do. Teaching a bunch of pre/post teens how to play games up at the game shop and helping with fundraisers for Haiti can take up a lot of time, add in trying to get painting done for the tournament that's coming up.

I've had a full plate…

Now, words on Naruto's abilities, You have yet to really see his elemental manipulations, but you're probably getting the hint there as he was beating on that mud clone. Weapons are his claws and I took a page from Hellsing with Walter's gloves. The original idea for Naruto was to use chakra strings as a kind of whip, but I decided to go with it a bit more literal, he can still use the normal threads, but I wanted him learning with a physical weapon first before he branches out onto his own invented skills. The kunai and senbon he uses are made from the crystallized chakra that he can make, but for now he can't make them on the fly, so he keeps a supply of them with him, the aura of chakra he uses is to help guide the wires while his fingers are encased from the bracers.

Now the bracers will be explained a bit later on, but they don't create the blades, those were made beforehand and were sealed into the bracers. The things themselves generate the venom, and with the crystal sealed into them it becomes laced with the toxins and let's his strikes become that much more deadly.

When it comes to Konan, to my knowledge you don't get to see a lot of uniqueness with her fights, so I took a page from one of my favorite manga, R.O.D. when it comes to the anime, I've only seen the OAV/movie, so a good bit is me just pulling things out of my rear…seeing as she was supposed to be so good with origami I decided to run with that aspect for now and use that for support attacks.

As to Anko's transformations, that one is simple, she has the prototype of the Curse Seal of Heaven, so her transformation went further than Sauske.

The daemon sealed within her is in Warhammer known as a Daemonette. They use glamors to get in entice and try and get in close where they use lightning speed to finish off their prey with their claws. They are minions of one of the Chaos powers known as Slaanesh, they embody the sins of the flesh, be it greed, taking pleasure in torture or simply indulging in carnal lusts. You can probably guess, this is the power that tempted Naruto in his vision.

As to Hel, t wont let me put her pic's link on here, going to try it on my profile, if that wont work, then to Fantasy Flight games and under Anime tactics head over to the Azure Alliance and look for Hel

As I said, Drakus is a long running character, I've dropped him in just about every setting I've come to like, and in this case it was the world of Anima. Funny enough, they are not an 'anime' based system/story, it's made by a company in Spain and really is kind of a holy roman empire meets some of Tolken. Great story and the characters are wonderful. If you have a chance look them up. I'll admit, a lot of the art/character designs are rather ridiculous…I've never been one to like overly large breasts or outfits that are to 'showy'. About the only exceptions have been Anko and Tsunade, in both cases I love the backgrounds and attitudes of them more than the actual character designs, as sad as that is…


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: Ya…not my story, but Drakus and his new little friend, mine.

A/N: Sorry about the tardiness again, I blame Bioshock 2…and Mass Effect 2…

I will say this, I don't remember the last time I had a geek-gassam as epic as the one when I beat Bioshock 2. I don't know why, but just the way it was narrated and finished left SO much potential for the future, to note, I've only beaten it on the 'good' path thus far, so for all I know the message is going to be _vastly _different when I get around to playing it again. I'm going to try and play it as a bad guy, but I don't think I can do it, I just can't kill kids…even in games…unless their properly annoying.

Journeys: Shadow of the Leaf

Chapter 12

Sarutobi was at a loss.

His day had been going well enough, he had helped with getting Naruto and Drakus sorted, and a favorable encounter with a foreign diplomat, and he had even managed to get all his paperwork done.

All before three. A good day.

Now , if he could trust his eyes, there was a cyclone that had formed in the Forest of Death, without a cloud in the sky, followed by a chakra pulse that he hadn't felt in many years.

One that belonged to his former student, Orochimaru.

The Hokage had already sent out his Anbu to investigate and was cursing his age not for the first time in recent memory. He remembered when he was a young man, on the field of battle, someone that could best any opponent in the world either through planning or straight battle, he had earned his title of The God of Shinobi. Now here he was, relying on ANBU to do everything for him like some kind of invalid!

He had just resolved himself to get back into shape when the bear masked ANBU appeared in his office and seemed to be…shaking?

"Hokage-sama…"

"Report."

"My Lord, upon arriving at the scene we were met by genin in training Tenten who seems to have been there since the beginning of the anomaly. According to her the barrier was erected by Drakus-sama."

"Drakus created that?"

"Hai, sir, upon finding the source of the barrier we made to disrupt the technique when we witnessed what looked to be a pitched battle going on inside. Sir…it looked as though…Anko was attacking them."

The elderly ninja's eyes narrowed at the stylized mask, "Explain. Anko would never attack a fellow ninja of the leaf."

"Sir…permission to speak freely."

"Granted."

"Sir, we are not even completely certain that it WAS Anko." Sarutobi arched an eyebrow at that. The special jonin was rather easy to recognize. "From what we could tell, it looked like her body had been…altered. Sir, I've never seen anything like it. She looked like…like…"

"SPEAK Bear!"

The ANBU stiffened as the stony face of his leader became a mask of fury, "She looked like Orochimaru Sir!"

Sarutobi felt his blood run cold. He had been hearing rumors that the snake had found a way to take over other bodies, could this be it?

"What was he…it…doing?"

"It looked to be engaged in an attack against the new ambassador as well as Drakus' son."

The elderly man's face paled at the thought of Naruto fighting his former student. "Naruto-kun…where was Drakus in all of this?"

"Drakus was engaged in his own battle. Sir…I don't know what he was fighting…but I can say it's something even you would have…issues with."

He could tell that whatever this creature was, this is what had seemed to chill Bear to his core, no easy task for one of his senior ANBU. "Bear…Takeshi…what's happening out there, what was he fighting."

The ANBU froze at hearing his name but understood that now, his leader was asking as a colleague, and a friend. With a shaking hand he pulled his mask up to cover his hair as he turned haunted eyes to the elderly leader. "Sir…I don't know."

Sarutobi's eyes widened at that, this was a man that had lived through the last great war, had , survived the Kyuubi attack, and had been on the front lines as an ANBU captain for the last ten years. This man, quite possibly, had seen everything. "Sir, whatever it was fighting, it had some kind of a powerful ginjutsu…S-Sir I saw my…my little Achika…it looked like he was killing Achika!" the Hokage choked on his pipe hearing that, he knew the man, there was no way he would kill a child, and told him as much, dropping a hand on the man's shoulder as the leader tried to calm his subordinate.

"B-But I know it wasn't her, it couldn't be, I dropped her off at school before my shift, there was no way. When…when he went for the killing blow, Cat called out for Hayate, Dog was saying something over and over…I didn't hear him…Drakus…when he ran the _thing _through with the spear…it _changed_ sir, I've never seen anything like it…it wasn't human Sir."

"Was it a summon?"

"No Sir…it was some kind of monster, it-it had these…_claws_ for hands," the shocked agent made a pinching motion with his hands, like a crab, "They were sharp Sir, I've only seen wind techniques cut like that, even when it fell it's claw cut through a stone as simply as parchment. They were moving so fast…"

"So you came here to report…who is monitoring the situation, and what steps have you taken to breech the field?"

Bear, having come back to himself a bit, slipped the mask back down, "Sir, Upon arriving and witnessing the fighting we attempted to breach the barrier with earth techniques to no avail, even as they were forming they seemed to be ground down to sand again. Water was frozen due to the speeds and pressure, and then shattered. Fire would have done little as would have lightning, and only Asuma-sama has a wind affinity potentially strong enough to open a hole. Sir, as much as it pains us to say it, we need you at the scene, Dog believes that your sealing arts may be the solution to this, as it seems that's what Drakus-san used to create the barrier in the first place."

Sarutobi gave a curt nod before throwing off the robes and hat, under, his casual clothing of a rather simple, blue with white trim kimono. The God of Shinobi took a moment to focus his chakra, causing an intricate series of stitches to illuminate throughout the clothing before he bit his thumb and ran it down the inseam before he was engulfed in smoke. Bear watched in surprise as the elderly man stepped from the smoke, clad in black battle armor, it was out of date, but he knew that with the Third's knowledge of seals it was probably stronger than the walls of Konoha themselves. With a glance to one another the pair vanished in a whirlwind of leaves, his completed paperwork flitting throughout the office.

Naruto's jaw was hanging limply as he saw Anko's form writhing at the base of the tree. A part of his mind noted the sounds of Konan retching into the bushes a few paces away, he couldn't blame her, if he hadn't had experienced what he had in their travels he would probably be in the same situation.

Anko, wasn't Anko anymore.

At least, not _just_ Anko.

He fought the urge to slap himself, the only time he had seen anything like this was…There Anko lay, her back bowed almost to the breaking point as she seemed to be…tearing herself apart.

Once finely manicured nails tore into her flesh as something seemed to be…_moving_…under her skin, as a section of her flesh split Naruto felt his blood run cold. A silted, yellow eye rolled and locked on him, its pupil narrowing as it seemed to lock onto Naruto. Slowly, much to the duo's horror, more seemed to come forth, all sprouting from the seal on her neck that was now glowing a pale blue, It's head seemed to be pushing through her skin as though a soggy tissue paper, and much to the pairs shock that was as far as human as it looked. From its neck down it looked to be…a snake? Anko's hands were pulling at what seemed to be that other, merged half, trying to rid it from her faster. Brown, pupil-less eyes locked onto his off-blue and through pained tears choked out, "Please…help me…"

Naruto was moving before he even knew what he was doing and lashed out, his right hand catching the creature by its throat as his other hand wrapped around a writhing body and pulled. Long stands of flesh seemed to cling to it as it fought to stay where it had been as Konan moved in and took Anko by the ankles, pulling just as hard to try and get this _thing _away from her.

As the things chest fully came into view Naruto had to fight back the urge to let go as the thing started screeching at him, cursing for interfering. With one final, titanic pull and a sickeningly wet sucking sound the snake creature came free. Anko curled into Konan's lap whimpering as the wounds began to close as the seal's energies started to expend themselves, but the hole at the heart of the seal refused to close as blood poured from her shoulder. Konan ripped the sash from her waist and pressed it to the wound in a desperate attempt to stem the blood flow as Naruto struggled to hold the serpent like creature as it howled at him in rage.

"Curse you boy! What did you do! What were those needles!"

Naruto wrapped the creature in his wires and tightened, forcing the creature to stop it's wiggling less it be torn apart. "You don't need to know teme, what are you!?"

Baleful yellow eyes locked on him before it gave a wicked smile, "Now now, that's not how this works, I ask a question, you ask a question."

"Or…" Naruto gave his pinky finger a twitch and the tip of the thing's tail fell to the ground with a gout of odd, purple blood.

"You bastard! You insolent _wretch_. Do your worse! You can never make me talk!"

Naruto's eyes narrowed before a cruel smile of his own formed on his features, "Oh, don't worry, I don't have to make you talk, we just have to wait for my father."

The creature wearing Orochimaru's face somehow seemed to pale further before it smirked, "Let him do his worst! I don't know anything of importance."

Naruto arched an eyebrow at that, "Oh, I think you may be wrong there. You know more than enough about the seal placed on Anko, and how we can counter it."

The snake let out a snort, "You've _already_ countered it, fool! Look! I'm here, not there."

The boy's features became that of feral mischief, "Don't worry, I'm sure there is much, _much_ more we can glean from that wonderful little mind of yours."

Another twitch and another section of the thing's tail fell to the ground as it's scream ripped through the forest, and despite the pain she was in, Anko smiled.

Drakus' hand was still twitching, wanting of its own accord to draw a weapon at the sight of the creature that stepped from the portal. He had been more than a little surprised when the odd, black bladed sword and rent the sky before hearing the voice trying to placate him. Slowly, as the opening began to close, the being came forward.

The creature before him was radiating power, so much it had every part of the warrior within him screaming to act, and it was taking every ounce of his will to keep that part subdued, this person was asking for peace, and he would grant it.

For now.

His eyes ran along its form, it was unlike anything he had ever seen before. It was obviously female and stood a bit taller than Anko did, but that's where easy comparison ended. She was wearing a jet black set of armor that seemed to both protect, and accent, her curves. The steel styled not unlike one would see in western cultures not unlike his own, though far less bulky. While not an hourglass figure, it wasn't something you would easily forget either, although that would probably be due more to her…accessories. The woman was pale, but not in the almost sickening way that Orochimaru had been, but it was clear she hadn't been in the sun much in her time. Jet black hair was cropped short, almost boyish but still held a bit of style, framing her face nicely and bringing out the odd, violet eyes she had.

Again his eyes drifted to her additions, after all, it wasn't everyday that you saw a woman with two sets wings, each sporting jet black feathers.

"And you are?"

The woman chuckled lightly as she sheathed her sword, the scabbard at her hip kicking out bright orange sparks as she did so with a practiced hand. Not giving him much of a chance to see the sword, though it was obvious it was similarly themed long sword. "Now now Drakus, you should know better than to ask for a name, such things have great power."

He smirked slightly as he crossed his arms, "Indeed. Then what shall I call you?"

The woman began to slowly stroll to the runic path that would lead to the central array, "You may call me Saber for now. Well done dispatching the wretches by the way, they can be ever so troublesome."

He scowled at the woman's back as she knelt to study his work, "You were watching."

"Yes, there is very little we do not watch, eternity can be so…boring, as I'm sure your coming to understand."

He tensed at that, "You seem to have me at a great disadvantage…Tell me, why are you here, and why shouldn't I dispatch you back to wherever you came from?"

Her face suddenly lost its playfulness and took on a stony edge. "I understand you impatience, however is it wise to threaten someone you know so little about?"

"You possess great power, and you have yet to state a purpose for being here, all you seem to be doing is studying my work, and employing a bit of conversation."

She laughed again, coming before the man and patting him on his arm, "Now now Drakus, aren't those reasons enough for a pleasant encounter?"

He smirked at that and gave a slight nod, "Yes, but not when there are more…pressing tasks."

"You mean Anko?"

As fast as the smirk had formed his eyes became that of steel, "What do you know of it?"

She gave a slight shrug, causing her wings to ruffle a bit before she let them settle about her like a cloak, "Only that if you do not accept my help, she will die."

The winged woman flinched as she suddenly found the man on her, his great hands clasping her shoulders. "How, how can you help?"

She took one his hands in hers before yanking it painfully from her shoulder, her scowl enough to melt steel, "_NEVER_ Lay your hands on me, without my permission. Know your place mortal!"

The two glared at each other for several long moments before both smiling, then laughing. "You know girl, not many could stare me down without flinching."

"The same could be said about me boy. Now then, you have to know that altering the seal like you did will have repercussions."

He gave a curt nod, "Indeed, but it was the only option, the daemons were killing her by degrees."

She let out a sigh before agreeing with him, "Yes, but the way you went about it was wrong, your still thinking with your old life Drakus, this world does not bow to your laws."

Drakus eyed the woman for a time before letting out a tired sigh of his own. "Yes, I know. I tried to incorporate their sealing arts into the array with…limited results. There was simply too little information about the curse seal and how to deal with it. Now tell me, Saber, what are you here for?"

The woman propped herself against one of the trees before crossing her arms, "You, I trust, are beginning to understand what it is that the one known as Orochimaru is attempting to do, yes?"

Drakus seemed to pick his words carefully for a time, unsure how much information to give up, "I believe so. He's attempting to find a way to make a 'perfect' body as a host, be it though bindings or genetic engineering, he does not seem to care, and if he is dipping into the ruinous powers…then we are all in danger. Tell me, do you know which of them he is trying to ally himself with? I doubt it is that of the tempter. He does not offer the kinds of delights that Orochimaru is seeking."

"You are correct, and I think you know which of them he is cavorting with even without my input, after all, he has been hunting you for almost all your life."

Drakus cursed under his breath before glancing to where his son would be. "How long."

"Such things cannot be known. However, I sense that for once, you will not be running."

He gave a mirthless laugh before nodding, "Your right, I have more to protect this time than in most instances. Now, as pleasing as this conversation is, you said that Anko will die without your help, explain."

She squared her shoulders, understanding that the pleasantries are largely over. "Yes, and she will, your act of separating the spirits from her and her body has left a void in her soul. The nature of that seal is meant to make them interdependent on each other. Thankfully Anko fought as hard as she did against him, thus allowing you even the opportunity to even try and remove the seal. If were anyone else, I doubt it would have gone so well. Now, this is something that can be fixed, if the spirit that was originally there would not be so detrimental, however, even a benevolent spirit would be twisted with that shard of Orochimaru's soul corrupting it."

"Shard?"

"Yes, Orochimaru has found a way to put a portion of his soul into the seals, its one method for him to eventually make his 'jumps' from host to host. Slowly the soul shard will use the bound spirit's energy to turn the target into something more…accommodating for him."

"I see…forgive me for saying this, how will this help Anko?"

"No, it's quite alright, you see, this is where I come in. With the daemons banished, there is a void left within her. I have had a vested interest in this case for…quite some time, and will offer to take their place."

He arched an eyebrow at that, "I sense a 'but' coming on."

She giggled at that, giving him pause, he didn't think a spirit like this would act in such a way. "You wouldn't be wrong in assuming such a thing. You know what I am, yes?"

He sent an appraising eye over her again, "If I had to guess, I would say a fallen angel of some form, though your kind usually has their wings taken as part of their punishment."

"Correct, however, as part of our atonement we are allowed to start earning them back, after a fashion... I currently am hoping to fulfill such a task, and with luck earn my next set of wings."

"And Anko is one of these tasks?"

She placed a finely mailed finger on her jaw before casting him a mischievous gaze, "Let's just say that she's a part of it. What do you say? If you help me in a future task, I'll help. You will not only save her life, you will be helping me earn back my grace as well as making her stronger than she can imagine!"

His eyes hardened at that, "What do you mean, stronger? What are you going to do to her!"

She raised both hands in a placating gesture, "Peace, peace. Understand, the seal did offer her great power, but it was something that would damage her, what I am offering is unrestricted access to my power, so long as I deem it is being used for the proper reasons. The seal will spread, and change her much like it would anyone else, with none of the negative side-effects, like the heightened aggressions and the lust for power."

Drakus gave a slow nod at that just as a scream ripped through the forest, snapping their heads to the source of the less than manly screech. "It seems as though they have finally separated, Drakus, we have little time, Anko is bleeding badly."

He gave another stiff nod and pulled the dagger from his bracer before moving to the path and altering a few of the runes slightly before the purple aura changed to a pale green and allowed the pair to move to the central array. Taking a moment to draw his axe he hung it from his belt before kneeling to change the runes on the other path.

"Saber, be ready, I don't know what we'll find here."

The angel nodded before drawing her sword, her wings rising so that at the barest moment she could take to the sky. He made the last cut in the ground and, rather than the green aura flaring up this one was a deep orange before there was a loud snapping sound, as though a great tree just broke at the trunk and the small clearing was suddenly filled with the four people. The large blond was kneeling on a creature's neck and seemed to be enjoying taunting it, while Konan was still doing the best she could to keep Anko from bleeding out. His son looked up to see Drakus and the odd woman who looked to be poised to deliver a killing blow to the man.

"Dad!"

He raised a hand to his son and waved slightly, trying to calm him. "No worries Naruto, she's here to help. Is that it?" Naruto nodded and took the creature by the neck, hauling it up and moving to hand it to his dad, "Later, first we have to help Anko, according to this woman she's going to die if we don't take…steps."

Konan chanced a glance at the group before a strained voice rang out, "Whatever you're going to do, do it fast!"

"Saber, what do we needed to do?"

Warily she moved to the downed woman, gently pulling the hands from the wound to examine the gaping wound on her shoulder. "Drakus, you need to re-make a seal for her, looks like that _thing_ destroyed it when he exited her. I'll work on sealing this up, get to work."

"Dad, what the hell is going on!"

"Naruto, Konan, I made a big mistake when I decided to do this…those daemons were bound to her soul, and with them gone…"

"It's going to collapse…"

He nodded while Konan just looked at the pair in confusion as this strange woman seemed to mumble something under her breath before her hands were wreathed in pale blue light before she began to trace the edges of the wound, with every pass it seemed to knit closed, little by little her motions were becoming faster as the wound closed. Drakus knelt by Anko and pulled her arm into his lap, taking a moment to wipe off the dagger on his fur before he set to work, etching both runes and seals into her forearm, the small scratches healing quickly and leaving pale scars.

Saber looked over at his work and nodded before she smirked. Focusing a bit of her energy she let her thumbnail become a fine claw before pricking her finger and, acting quickly, made a quick, yet strangely elegant, design over the scars and resting her palm over it for a moment.

"It's time. Anything you want to say before we finish up?"

"What are you doing to Anko-nee-chan!"

Drakus dropped a hand on his son's shoulder, at his look the larger man shook his head, "Naruto, this woman has offered herself up to help Anko, all we have to do is help her one day with a task she must complete."

"B-But who is she?"

"A fallen angel son, but whatever she did, she is trying to atone. Right now, that will save Anko's life, we have no other options."

Naruto nodded but still looked for from trusting as the girl looked back at Drakus. His father gave a small smile to the woman and nodded. "Thank you Saber. I owe you one."

Lost to all those gathered the girl turned back quickly, hiding a blush that was threatening to form on her features, a single thought running through her head as a smile formed, 'Oh yes, this is going to be fun.'

Drakus watched as Saber began speaking softly, allowing none to hear her save Anko before she placed her sword in the woman's hand, taking the time to curl her fingers around the grip before she placed her free hand over the seal, then, with a brilliant flash she was gone, the gathered ninja and warrior blinking away the spots to see a strangely content Anko laying on the forest floor.

Drakus was the first to move to the fallen kunoichi and gently pulled her into his arms, lifting the woman bridal style as Naruto took his dagger and moved to the seals. While he may not know how to make them all, he did know how to handle the disruption of such things.

If there was one thing he was good at, it was breaking things.

As the seal array began to break down so did the barrier that had been keeping the masses at bay, not that the four of them could tell, after all, they had been a bit busy.

As the group were about to move out of the forest they found themselves surrounded by two dozen men and women with varying, animal themed masks, at the heart of the group was the aged Hokage, resembling the man he once was, it seemed the simple act of dawning the weathered armor had been enough to rekindle the man's fires of youth.

Naruto and Konan looked a bit nervous at the gathered ninja and only a glare from Drakus stopped them from drawing their weapons once more. He turned back to smile at his old friend and with a rather playful hint to his normally gruff voice spoke, "Sarutobi-sama, to what do we owe the pleasure?"

The village leader's eye twitched, "Care to explain, Drakus-kun, as to why you have destroyed such a vast portion of the forest, why there was a tornado that could be seen from Kumo, and more importantly, why is it that Anko is unconscious!?"

Drakus' posture stiffened as his eyes hardened, "Finishing what was started three years ago, my friend."

Sarutobi's eyes widened at that before running a hand over his bare head as a deep sigh escaped his lips. He gave an almost unseen nod and the gathered ANBU vanished once more, although the whole of the group could tell, simply from the amount of chakra flooding the air, that they were still close at hand, "Drakus, Konan, Naruto, I think we should take this to my office."

The three nodded before they started their trek through the village, just as they were about to start ascending the stairs of the tower the bundle in the larger man's arms began to stir. Causing the group to pause case worried eyes upon her.

Anko let out a slight purr as she tried to snuggle deeper into the soft blanket that seemed to be pressed about her, in her mind; she had never felt so warm. Slowly one pupils-less brown eyes began to flutter before she looked up into the wild features of were hovering over her.

Drakus' eyes widened in surprise as a soft hand game up to run down his cheek, a sleepy voice carrying in the quiet room, "I must be dreaming…"

Drakus bit back a laugh as the group began to slowly climb the stairs, doing they best to keep from disturbing the exhausted woman, "Oh…and why's that?"

She gave a half smile as she reached up and patted his cheek, "You haven't aged a day…"

Drakus felt his blood run cold as he almost stumbled, if he was in a better state of mind he would have laughed at both Naruto and Sarutobi mimicking him. Only Konan looked at the man in confusion before her eyes slowly started to widen. In a flash her hand came up, pointing in accusation, "I _KNEW_ I recognized you!"

The three men looked to one-another for a moment before the same sentiment came from each of them, "Shit…"

AN: Sorry this one took a bit longer than I thought, I went through two rewrites before I even came close to something I liked, don't know why this one was so rough on me. I think it was mainly because I was having issues with Saber. That and I am trying to downplay Drakus' role, and that really won't get to happen until the training starts up in a chapter or two.

I will say, that the next chapter will feature a bit of explanation and some back and forth between Drakus and Anko before Tenten get's her shot in on Naruto. Also, to minimize a bit of the flack that may come, the next chapter will take a bit longer mainly because there is another tale I've been wanting to get the next chapter done for and posted, should give me something else to work on and hopefully keep me from burnout on one story, something that I REALLY don't want to see happen when it comes to this story.


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